Funeral March of a Marionette

In 1879, he orchestrated the piece with piccolo, flute, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets in A, 2 bassoons, 2 horns in D, 2 trumpets in A, 3 trombones, ophicleide, timpani, bass drum, cymbals, triangle, and strings.

[3] The work is in the key of D minor with a central section in D major; the time signature is 6/8.

[3] The following storyline underlies the "Funeral March of a Marionette": Additionally, inscriptions are found throughout the score as follows: The music was used to accompany at least four films in the late 1920s: Alfred Hitchcock had heard the music in the 1927 film Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans.

In 1955, when choosing the theme music for his television series Alfred Hitchcock Presents, he remembered the effect that "Funeral March of a Marionette" had on him.

It was through Hitchcock's program that the music achieved its widest audience, although few people would have been able to identify the composer or title.