Lucien Jean-Baptiste shook Christmas traditions up with this little bit provocative arrangement of the famous “Marche des Rois.” He transformed it into a festive, joyful and colorful Provençal popular melody, with a funny title. It was even performed by great orchestras thanks to Georges Bizet’s “L’Arlésienne.” Lucien Jean-Baptiste wanted a version that would be rather cinematic for the listener to have the impression of attending a corso carnival procession, instead of simply classical arrangement. The basic melodic motive (G-G-D-G) is parodic and is reworked in the whole piece. The onomatopoeias of bass voices are similar to brass, timbales, exclamations (Vivat!) and depict the procession’s movement. The second theme is more subtle (there is no bass) and represents the Star picture and the naivety of squires. The structure can be compared to a traditional organization of a trio minuet. The general atmosphere is the one of a free entertainment performed on a public highway: three satisfied and respectable full kings are cheered by the crowd. This quadrille is funny: kings are spoiled by thirty squires. Those characters are also in the Gospel of Matthew translated with a Semitic vocabulary. This popular melody can be questioned because it is very far from the usual picture of the Three Wise Men.
