Eduard Wagnes

Wagnes was born 18 March 1863 in Austria. His father, a musician and manufacturer brass instruments, taught him to play music.^[1] Wagnes was accepted into the Styrian Music Association music school at age 7 and learned the French horn; at age 15, he became first horn player at the Graz City Theater. He was later a solo horn player in Eduard Strauss's orchestra.^[2] He served in the Austro-Hungarian Army from 1885 to 1889.^[3]

Wagnes was later appointed bandmaster of the second Bosnian infantry regiment, where he composed several marches. The best-known of these, "Die Bosniaken Kommen," was adopted as the regiments' de facto march and remains a popular Austrian composition.^[4] He would ultimately write around 300 pieces, primarily marches but also including waltzes, a mass, and three operettas.^[2]

Wagnes was admired by Gustav Mahler, who wanted to hire him as a horn player, and by King Ludwig III. He received the Golden Cross of Merit with the Crown, and a street in Graz was named after him.^[2]

He died 27 March 1936.^[3]

• Die Bosniaken kommen - 1895
• Flitsch Marsch - 1928
• Felsenfest für's Vaterland - 1932
• Helden von Meletta - 1932
• Ausseer Buam
• Durch dick und dünn
• Für Freiheit und Ehr
• Hand in Hand
• Heldenhaft Marsch
• Mit eisener Kraft
• Ritterlich
• Zum Schutz und Trutz

• 1910 Alt-Wien, operette - libretto: Ferdinand Maierfeld-Enter
• 1911 Die Klosterprinzessin, operette - libretto: Hans Pflanzer