Entreé des Lutteurs aux Arénes

The delegation of the band of the Bohemian Infantry Regiment von Hortstein No. 92 to Berlin in February 1912 where it was to play music for the “Ball of the Austrians” opened new perspectives for Fucík, as the concert tour proved to be a triumph for the well known Imperial and Royal regimental bandmaster. After he returned to Terezín, he came to the decision to dissolve his contract as a regimental bandmaster effective Aug. 01, 1913 in order to embark on the career of a free lance music director and composer in Berlin. In the German capital he founded the Prague Musicians’ Orchestra and also a publishing company of his own. Although he re-established old contacts, for example with Paul Lincke, and despite the fact that he was openly welcomed, he had to accept already after a short time that it was quite a different affair to be active in the uniform of a regimental bandmaster rather than having to win one’s bread with an orchestra of one’s own competing against numerous comparable fine orchestras. The final breakthrough did not materialize, especially since the assassination of Sarajevo caused a deep cesura in Fucík’s activities in Berlin. When he died in 1916, he had not at all achieved what could well have been possible under more favorable circumstances. Bohumil Pešek, the renowned authority on Fucík, aptly describes this situation: Like almost all military bandmasters Fucík possessed a drawerful of completed or semi-finished compositions in order to be in a position to promptly react to non-foreseeable (military) events. When the war broke, this entailed an inflation of military marches. Fucík too had to offer something in that field. His marches, however, suffered the same lot as most of the other composition of that time: with the exception of only a few pieces they completely fell into oblivion. Among the marches of the Berlin period that belong to the bracket of works just described, also figures “The Entry of the Olympic Champion Wrestlers” as it remained completely unknown for many decades. First fragments of the march may be traced back to 1907, yet without a title or an opus number. It is rather astonishing that this sparkling march was finally rediscovered in the United States during the 1970s. Siegfried Rundel therefore brought to light a march gem in his new adaptation for contemporary band that has unduly remained unknown for too long a time.