Vergnügungszug

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Vergnügungszug ('Journey Train' or 'Pleasure Train') op. 281 is a polka composed by Johann Strauss II in 1864. The polka was composed for the Association of Industrial Societies' Ball held in the Redoutensaal on 19 January 1864 and inspired from the opening of the Austrian Southern Railway lines which operated many 'pleasure trains' offering many journeys to the countryside.

Strauss himself was not the first composer to write a piece celebrating the technological innovation. Hans Christian Lumbye, the popular Danish composer wrote his 'Copenhagen Steam Railway' galop while much earlier, Johann Strauss I celebrated the opening of the first Austrian steam railway on 14 November 1837 between the Viennese suburbs of Floridsdorf and Deutsch Wagram with his own appropriately-titled waltz 'Eisenbahn-Lust Walzer' op. 89 (Railway Joy Waltz). Eduard Strauss also wrote his own famous quick-polka Bahn Frei op. 45 which also celebrates the opening of a new railway line.

Johann Strauss II's polka however, stood out with his vividly descriptive polka with triangles imitating train bells whereas horns suggest the train's chuffing. The Trio section does not let up the orchestral delight, with the melody constantly hinting of the train's journey. The polka has to end, like the train's journey and Strauss powered home the conclusion with high chords before a resounding flourish underlined by a strong snare drumroll.

Although many of Strauss' works commemorate travel and other forms of transportation, neither he nor his brother eagerly undertook extensive journeys. An anecdote states that Johann himself was terrified at the mere mention of the hanging precipices at the Semmering and later during a railroad trip to Boston in the 1870s for a concert tour in the United States, his wife, Henrietta Treffz noted that Strauss confessed that he would rather be killed than to take another trip via the American railroad. Many stories suggest that Strauss was terrified of train journeys and that he could be found huddled on the train floor although these are not substantiated.

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Based on original text by Peter Kemp, The Johann Strauss Society of Great Britain. Used with permission.