“Under the Double Eagle” began life as the Austrian military march “Unter dem Doppeladler,” composed by Josef Franz Wagner in 1893. The title refers to the double-headed eagle of the Habsburg empire. The march traveled to the United States, where it entered the country and bluegrass repertoire as an instrumental favorite.
With its memorable strains and march rhythm, the piece adapted readily to guitar, mandolin, banjo, and fiddle, and it became a staple showpiece for string bands and country instrumentalists. It is the kind of tune that draws on a much older European tradition while sounding entirely at home in American hands.
This recording features the fiddler Chubby Wise, a foundational bluegrass fiddler known for his early work with Bill Monroe’s Blue Grass Boys. It appears on his album “An American Original.”