Eislauf (Ice-Skating) Polka schnell Op.261

Josef Strauss (1827–70)

Eislauf (Ice-Skating) Polka schnell Op.261

If Josef Strauss had not been plagued by illness, which resulted in his death at the age of forty-three, and if he had been as ambitious as Johann and Eduard, he might well have turned out the greatest composer of the three. Certainly, if Johann was the waltz king of Vienna, Josef was the polka prince. While he excelled in the Polka française (or slow polka) and the hybrid Polka-mazur (or polka-mzurka) he could produce as boisterous a Polka schnell (or quick polka) as either of his brothers when the occasion required. If his exhilarating Eislauf polka is based on personal experience he must have been a positive danger on the ice-rink.