The Margaret Waltz

It is a particularly beautiful feeling to be honored with a waltz that bears my name and expresses my life’s values musically. For this, I want to thank everyone who contributed to the creation of the waltz and its premiere.

My Flame of Peace burns in many countries around the world. It touches the hearts of many people and cultures. It is also my heartfelt wish that the Margareten Waltz spreads across the world, that it is played and sung, and that it carries this message of peace to people, from small ensembles to full orchestras.

I stand for the values described in this piece of music. I try to embody them to the best of my ability and with all the knowledge I have gained from history, to live them and to pass them on. Especially in our time, there is a need for willingness and understanding of all the values that have this one great goal: the creation and preservation of the precious good that is peace!

Music is the universal language of peace, understood by anyone who opens their heart to it, knowing no boundaries and connecting peoples and cultures. Thus, the Peace Ambassador and founder of the "Flame of Peace" foundation, HIRH Archduchess Herta Margarete Habsburg-Lothringen, is undoubtedly the most deserving dedicatee and namesake of my waltz.

When writing the lyrics for the Margareten Waltz, I was filled with a special sense of confidence. I was guided by a deep desire for peace. Accompanied by the piano piece by André Vitek, sung and played by my partner and singer Claudia Puhr on the piano, the idea of a concept waltz with four lyrical sections came to me. These sections had to represent the very areas for which Herta Margarete Habsburg-Lothringen lives, advocates, and acts: mindfulness, tradition, art, and peace.

In the first part, this mindfulness towards all living beings and all the values that enrich our lives flows into the breath of life. Through the repetitions of breathing, this plea emerges: to do it, to feel it, to live it.

Herta Margarete Habsburg-Lothringen represents a new House of Habsburg. She values historical traditions that she seeks to integrate into democracy. In this sense, the imperial tradition is a value that can be passed down from generation to generation, as part of our history and part of our future.

Art and culture are among the strongest ambassadors of peace that we humans have, and they also connect us. This bridge-building through art is already expressed in this waltz: music as a heart-opener and a unifying, intergenerational treasure.

The powerful concluding section centers on peace, which is also the beginning again. The cycle of peace can continue to radiate, inspire, and call people to action!