This military march had its beginning as a poem. Robert Planquette set the poem to music when he was only 19 but sold his rights to a publisher when he was in financial distress. Because of its popularity
Opus 24 was written when Mendelssohn was a young lad of 15! As it is one of the few original works for band there is a wealth scholarly study available. Study alone does not make a piece survive the test of