"Standards". Josef Strauss gave the impressive title Normen to the waltz that he composed for the justice ball in the Sofiensaal on 27th January 1863, dedicating it to “Vienna’s University Law Students”. Since doctors had forbidden Johann from composing owing to the danger of suffering a breakdown, Josef was placed in the position of having to contribute all of the other dedications—apparently in a great rush. In any case, that was a great feat, for Johann did not announce the doctors’ orders until the beginning of January 1863. He did not leave his brother very much time, but the shorter the span of time available to Josef Strauss to come up with the eight ball dedication works in all for the 1863 Carnival season, the more remarkable his stand-in service becomes. The waltz Normen, in any case, does not show any signs of having been rushed. The melodies are carefully balanced against each other; a steady flow of always new ideas sets the character of the work. Normen are basic rules of a legal system in human society. Yet this waltz is more than a ‘standard’ dance composition. The fantasy of its composer elevates it above the mere adherence to a proper form. It was “Pepi”’s genius that enabled him to raise the standard to the special with his inspired ideas. In their ball reports, journalists did not go into the special quality of this waltz. They only recorded its original performance at the Justice Ball on 27th January 1863 and merely added the formula, which had already become standard, that the work “had to be repeated”.

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Painting: Consulting Her Lawyer
Artist: Frank Dadd

Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra, Kosice
Karl Albert Geyer