Johann Gottfried Piefke
Johann Gottfried Piefke was a German band leader, and composer of military music.
Life
Piefke was born in Schwerin an der Warthe, Prussia. He arranged Franz Liszt's symphonic poem – Tasso for military band and may also have similarly arranged some of Liszt's marches. He died in Frankfurt an der Oder.Piefke also wrote:
- Pochhammer Marsch
- Siegesmarsch
- Gitana Marsch
- Margarethen Marsch
- Kaiser-Wilhelm-Siegesmarsch
- Der Alsenströmer, a march commemorating the Battle of Als during the Second Schleswig War.
- Der Lymfjordströmer, another march commemorating the Danish War.
Honors
- Düppeler-Sturmkreuz, 1864
- Golden Medal of the Emperor of Austria-Hungary, 1865
- Royal Order of the House of Hohenzollern, 1869
- Iron Cross Second Class, 1870
- Prussian Crown Order, 1880
In popular culture
- "Piefke" persists as a derogatory nickname for Germans in Austria.
- Piefke's Königgrätzer Marsch can be heard playing during the book burning scene in the film Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. It was one of Adolf Hitler's favorite marches and was often played during his public appearances.