Zigeunerbaron-Quadrille (Gypsy Baron Quadrille), Op. 422

Zigeunerbaron-Quadrille (Gypsy Baron Quadrille) premiered in 1886 with the Strauss Orchestra conducted by Eduard Strauss.
The piece consists of arrangements of music from Strauss’s comic opera, Der Zigeunerbaron (The Gypsy Baron).
- The stage work is based the novel, Saffi, by Hungarian author Mór Jókai.¹
- Synopsis for Der Zigeunerbaron
A quadrille is a series of six dances performed in sequence:
1. Le Pantalon (Trousers)
2. L’été (Summer)
3. La Poule (The Hen)
4. La Trénis (named for the dance master Trenitz)
5. La Pastourelle (The Shepherd Girl)
6. Finale
The dances originated in France and rose in popularity across the continent in the 19th century. The dances were complicated and led to many mishaps (see caricature below)²

George Cruikshank: Vis à Vis / Accidents in Quadrille Dancing, 1817 (Source)

Peter Kemp, Notes in accompanying booklet, The Johann Strauss Edition Vol. 45 performed by the Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Alfred Walter, Marco Polo 8.223245, 1995, compact disc.
Maureen Buja, “Dance, Dance, Dance: The Quadrille,” Interlude (2022), accessed August 11, 2023, https://interlude.hk/dance-dance-dance-the-quadrille/.

25280