Rákóczy March

A celebrated Hungarian piece with great patriotic associations.

Francis II Rákóczy (1676-1735) was the leader of the 1703 Hungarian rebellion against the Austrians, but the tune bearing his name did not appear until a century later. János Biliari, a Hungarian Gypsy violinist attached to a Hungarian regiment during the Napoleonic wars, is credited with its composition. It was first printed in 1820 in a collection of popular Army marches and quickly became a favorite.

FRANZ LISZT played it as a piano solo during his tour of Hungary in 1838 and later incorporated it in his HUNGARIAN RHAPSODY No. 15. HECTOR BERLIOZ arranged the Rákóczy March for orchestra in 1846 under the title Marche Hongroise and also included it as a separate number in his dramatic legend La Damnation de Faust (1846).