The William Tell Overture is the overture to the opera William Tell (original French title Guillaume Tell), whose music was composed by Gioachino Rossini. William Tell premiered in 1829 and was the last of Rossini’s 39 operas, after which he went into semi-retirement (he continued to compose cantatas, sacred music and secular vocal music). The overture is in four parts, each following without pause. There has been repeated use (and sometimes parody) of parts of this overture in both classical music and popular media. It was the theme music for The Lone Ranger in radio, television and film, and has become widely associated with horseback riding since then.
The overture, which lasts for approximately 12 minutes, paints a musical picture of life in the Swiss Alps, the setting of the opera. It was described by Hector Berlioz, who usually loathed Rossini’s works, as “a symphony in four parts”. But unlike an actual symphony with its distinct movements, the overture’s parts transition from one to the next without a break.
1. Prelude: Dawn
The prelude is a slow section in E major and in an A-B-A-Coda structure, scored for five solo cellos accompanied by double basses. It begins in E minor with a solo cello which is in turn ‘answered’ by the remaining cellos and the double basses. An impending storm is hinted at by two very quiet timpani rolls (1st on E, 2nd on B) resembling distant thunder. The section ends with a very high sustained note played by the first cello. The duration of the prelude is about three minutes.
2. Storm
This dynamic section in E minor and in an A-B-A structure, is played by the full orchestra. It begins with the violins and violas. Their phrases are punctuated by short wind instrument interventions of three notes each, first by the piccolo, flute and oboes, then by the clarinets and bassoons. The storm breaks out in full with the entrance of the French horns, trumpets, trombones and bass drum. The volume and number of instruments gradually decreases as the storm subsides. The section ends with the flute playing alone. Part 2, Storm, also lasts for about three minutes.
3. Ranz des vaches
This pastorale section in G major and in an A-B-A-Coda form, signifying the calm after the storm, begins with a Ranz des vaches or “Call to the Cows”, featuring the cor anglais. The English horn then plays in alternating phrases with the flute, culminating in a duet with the triangle accompanying them in the background. The melody appears several times in the opera, including the final act, and takes on the character of a leitmotif. Call to the Cows lasts a little more than two minutes. This segment is often used in animated cartoons to signify daybreak or bucolic beauty, most notably in Walt Disney’s The Old Mill] and Marv Newland’s Bambi Meets Godzilla, which uses the tune as its main musical score before Godzilla stomps on Bambi.
4. Finale: March of the Swiss Soldiers
The finale, often called the “March of the Swiss Soldiers” in English, is in E major like the prelude, but it is an ultra-dynamic galop heralded by trumpets and played by the full orchestra. It alludes to the final act, which recounts the Swiss soldiers’ victorious battle to liberate their homeland from Austrian repression. The segment, in an Intro-A-B-A-Coda form, lasts for about three minutes. Although there are no horses or cavalry charges in the opera, this segment is often used in popular media to denote galloping horses, a race, or a hero riding to the rescue. Its most famous use in that respect is as the theme music for The Lone Ranger; that usage has become so famous that some notable writers have defined an “intellectual” as “a man who can listen to the William Tell Overture without thinking of the Lone Ranger”.
