Johannesburg Festival Overture is a composition for orchestra by the English composerWilliam Walton, commissioned to mark the seventieth anniversary ofJohannesburg in 1956. It is a short, lively piece, fast-moving throughout.

In 1956, to celebrate the seventieth anniversary of the founding ofJohannesburg, the city organised a festival. Leading performers were engaged includingMargot Fonteyn, theLa Scala company, theLondon Symphony Orchestra (LSO), and as soloistsYehudi Menuhin,Andrés Segovia andPierre Fournier and as conductorsSir Malcolm Sargent andGuido Cantelli.^[1] Among the works the LSO scheduled for its five concerts was Walton'sFirst Symphony,^[2] butErnest Fleischmann, the musical director of the festival, also wanted a new Walton piece for the opening concert. He approached the composer in January 1956 with a commission for an orchestral work.^[3] He suggested that the piece should include some African themes, and sent Walton someBantu melodies.^[4] Walton sent for recordings of African music from the African Music Society,^[3] and worked on the piece at his home inIschia from February until the end of May 1956.^[4] He incorporated the main theme fromJean Bosco Mwenda's "Masanga", which had been released on record earlier in the decade.^[5] Also included was a theme fromRuanda-Urundi, "Nimuze".^[6]

Walton described the overture to his publisher as "a non-stop gallop ... slightly crazy, hilarious and vulgar".^[7] Walton's biographerMichael Kennedy calls it "a seven-minuteRossinian romp".^[8]

Sargent conducted theSouth African Broadcasting Corporation Symphony Orchestra on 25 September 1956 atJohannesburg City Hall in the concert that opened the festival.^[9]Efrem Kurtz introduced the work to Britain in aLiverpool Philharmonic concert on 13 November 1956 at thePhilharmonic Hall.^[9] Sargent conducted the first London performance, with theBBC Symphony Orchestra at theRoyal Festival Hall on 23 January 1957.^[9] The American premiere was given by theBoston Symphony Orchestra conducted byCharles Munch on 15 March 1957.^[10]

The work is scored for three flutes (third doubling piccolo), two oboes, cor anglais, three clarinets in A, three bassoons (third doubling contrabassoon) – four horns in F, three trumpets in B-flat, three trombones, tuba – timpani, three or four percussion (side drum, cymbals, suspended cymbal, bass drum, xylophone, tambourine, triangle, tenor drum, maracas, rumba sticks, castanets, glockenspiel) – harp – strings.^[11]

The work is a rondo, fast-paced throughout. Its first tempo marking is presto capriccio; after a very small ritardando the tempo becomes vivacissimo, which accelerates into a prestissimo. The key is D.^[12]

Oxford University Press published an 84 page study score in 1958. The score, edited byDavid Lloyd-Jones, is included in the William Walton Edition, in volume 14, "Overtures".^[11]Vilém Tauský arranged a reduced orchestra version in 1957.^[13]

The composer recorded the work with thePhilharmonia Orchestra on 26 March 1957.^[14] Later recordings:

• Howes, Frank (1973).The Music of William Walton (second ed.). London: Oxford University Press.ISBN 978-0-19-315431-5.
• Kennedy, Michael (1989).Portrait of Walton. Oxford: Oxford University Press.ISBN 978-0-19-816705-1.
• Lloyd, Stephen (2001).William Walton: Muse of Fire. Boydell Press.ISBN 978-0851158037.
• Morrison, Richard (2004).Orchestra: The LSO: A Century of Triumph and Turbulence. London: Faber and Faber.ISBN 978-0-57-121584-3.

• Johannesburg Festival Overture - Walton (Full Orchestral Score Video) onYouTube. Video duration 7m 49s. Uploader Adam Schreiber Music, 2021.
• William Walton - Johannesburg Festival Overture (Bundesjugendorchester, Alexander Shelley) onYouTube. Video duration 8m 25s. Uploader EuroArtsChannel, 2021.

• Overtures by William Walton
• Concert overtures
• 1956 compositions
• Johannesburg

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