Perpetuum mobile

Even before Strauß's operettas and dance music works were played in opera houses and concert halls, he had composed a few purely symphonic works, for example the Perpetuum mobile. An ostinato bass figure in a polka rhythm forms the framework for this piece; the figure is kept moving by witty variations of the melody line. The Perpetuum mobile is of interest to the flutist not only due to its musical content, but because there are two highly exposed piccolo solo passages in bars 69 and 207. With the duration of three minutes, the Musical joke can be an effective encore for a successful concert evening.