Rondeau: The Prince of Denmark's March
("Trumpet Voluntary")
by Jeremiah Clarke
arr. by Michèle Sharik

The Prince of Denmark’s March was first published in 1700 as a work for harpsichord and strings. In the 19th century, it was arranged for organ by Leeds (England) Town Hall organist William Spark (1823-1897), who mistakenly attributed it to Henry Purcell (1659-1695), a contemporary of Jeremiah Clarke (1674-1707).

When Sir Henry Wood (1869–1944) subsequently arranged the piece for trumpet, organ, and percussion for the famous BBC Proms concerts, the piece became one of the best-known tunes from England, but under Spark’s title of Trumpet Voluntary and with the mis-attribution by Spark to Purcell.

It wasn’t until 1952 when a manuscript was discovered in a London attic that the work’s true author again became known. You will still sometimes find it published today, over 50 years later, under Purcell’s name!

Clarke wrote many pieces: operas, theater music, religious and secular choral works, as well as music for the harpsichord. He committed suicide in 1707 as the result of an unhappy love affair and is buried in the New Crypt of St. Paul’s Cathedral in London.

Copyright © 2010–2021 Michèle Sharik and The Golden Dance :: Store Home Page