Slavic March (1876)

In the course of Russian involvement in the Serbian-Turkish War, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840–1893) composed the Slavic March on behalf of the Russian Musical Society in 1876, which he also called the "Serbian-Russian March" and which was performed at a Red Cross charity concert. The first part of the piece uses Serbian folk songs in depicting the oppression of the Serbs by the Ottomans. The second section, which also deals with the Russian national anthem God save the tsar, deals with the Russian desire to rush to the Serbs' aid, whereupon in the third part the Serbian call for help is heard once again. The finale, in turn, describes the march of the Russian volunteers into battle.

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840–1893), Slavic March (1876), Opus 31, ensemble: Berliner Philharmoniker, conductor: Herbert von Karajan, date of recording: 1967, 9'31 min.; audio source: courtesy of Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-d5vnmQ7nmY.