Funeral March

The funeral march (French: marche funèbre) is a slow processional composition in the Western classical tradition, written for funerals, memorial ceremony or as a movement within larger works. Its character rests on a heavy, measured tread, dotted figures, muffled drum imitations and minor-mode harmonies, often answered by a contrasting lyrical trio of consolation. Canonical examples range from *Henry Purcell*'s music for the funeral of Queen Mary (1695) through the marches in *Ludwig van Beethoven*'s "Eroica" Symphony and *Frédéric Chopin*'s Piano Sonata No. 2 to *Gustav Mahler*'s Fifth Symphony.