Valdresmarsjen (Valdres March)

Johannes Hanssen was a Norwegian bandmaster, composer and teacher. His most famous composition is his Valdresmarsjen (Valdres March, 1904), a march celebrating the beautiful Valdres region in Norway that lies between Oslo and Bergen. The main theme is the signature fanfare for the Valdres Battalion, which is based on an ancient melody formerly played on the medieval lur, an uncoiled wooden wind instrument. The melody of the trio section derives from a fiddle tune traditional in Hardanger and a pentatonic folk tune, above a typical Norwegian drone bass line. It was first performed in 1904 by the band of the second regiment of Norway, with the composer playing the baritone horn himself. 

This version features obligato passages for piccolo trumpet.