The ‘Ox’ Minuet

A lot of musical titles make no real sense. Sometimes they’re just marketing—an attempt by a publisher to make a piece sound special. And sometimes the name is born from an incident as random as this.

One day Joseph Haydn received a visit from a butcher who said that he and his daughter adored Haydn’s music. The daughter was about to be married, and the father boldly asked whether Haydn would write a minuet for the wedding.

Kind “Papa Haydn” agreed. A few days later the butcher returned to collect the music.

Not long after, Haydn heard the minuet being played outside his own window. Curious, he looked out and saw a small band of musicians arranged in a circle around a large ox—tastefully decorated with flowers.

The butcher stepped forward and presented the ox to Haydn. For such excellent music, he said, the composer deserved the finest ox he owned. And from that day on, Haydn’s little piece was known as the “Ox Minuet.”