Koningslied
The Koningslied (German: King's Song) is the official song for the accession to the throne of the Dutch Prince Willem-Alexander on April 30, 2013. It was composed with the participation of dozens of well-known Dutch artists.
Reactions
In the run-up, there was strong criticism of the song both in the press and on the Internet, which is why the composer John Ewbank withdrew it on April 20. However, two days later it was confirmed as an official song by the Nationaal Comité Inhuldiging, the organizing committee of the enthronement. The Koningslied was published on April 19, 2013 and reached number 1 on the Dutch iTunes charts and number 4 of the Nederlandse Top 40 as well as number 1 of the Dutch single Top 100 in the week before the succession of the throne .
The criticism referred, among other things, to clear linguistic errors and dubious expressions, which probably go back to the influence of the English language. The banal text or the complicated melody was also criticized, which makes the song hardly suitable for singing along. It is too melancholy, and the lyrical I speaks of protecting him (Willem-Alexander), although conversely the king should protect the people. Some, on the other hand, were bothered by the rap part, since this style of music arouses associations with violent criminals. After all, critics felt strongly reminded of the melodies of other songs, like Fairytale from the movie Shrek . Willem-Alexander himself declined to comment on the song.
According to Peil.nl, only 46 (versus 43) percent of those surveyed thought it was a good idea to sing a song together at the time of the enthronement. On a scale from 1 to 10, the song was given a grade of 3.8. The melody did the best with 5.0, followed by the text of the chorus (3.7). 47 percent would have preferred it if the song had been canceled (39 for the song). Only one percent said they wanted to sing the song together at the agreed time in the evening, six percent at home or with friends and acquaintances. Of the various songs on the occasion, 16 percent of those surveyed found Koningin van alle Mensen (from the RTL Boulevard program) the best, followed by Je bent een Koning by the two students Allard and Huib and only then with 12 percent the official one.
Contributing artist
- Willeke Alberti
- Ali B
- Jim Bakkum
- Bollebof
- Marco Borsato
- Alain Clark
- Ben Cramer
- Esmée Denters
- do
- Sharon Doorson
- Frans Duijts
- Edwin Evers
- Jennifer Ewbank
- Fouradi
- Danny Froger
- René Froger
- Jack van Gelder
- Niels Geusebroek
- Glennis Grace
- Wouter Hamel
- André Hazes Jr.
- Roxeanne Hazes
- Ruben Hein
- Chris Hordijk
- Ruth Jacott
- Laura Jansen
- Chantal Janzen
- Gerard Joling
- Pearl Jozefzoon
- Jeroen van Koningsbrugge
- Carel Kraayenhof
- Iris Kroes
- Paul de Leeuw
- Lisa Lois
- Jamai Loman
- Guus Meeuwis
- Anita Meijer
- Lavinia Meijer
- Johnny de Mol
- Nielson
-
Rob de Nijs(retired after reading the lyrics of the song) - Trijntje Oosterhuis
- Kraantje Pappie
- Gers Pardoel
- Syb van der Ploeg
- Henk Poort
- Jaap Reesema
- Edsilia Rombley
- Rowwen Hèze
- Frederique Spigt
- Lee Towers
- Babette van Veen
Web links
- Official website
- Sorry voor het Koningslied on Facebook
- official video of the Koningslied on Youtube
Individual evidence
- ^ The composer withdraws the Königslied
- ↑ The Koningslied in the Nederlandse Top 40 / Dutch Single Top 100
- ^ Koningslied in German (Das Königslied) on YouTube with subtitles
- ↑ Peil.nl ( Memento of January 13, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) accessed on May 25, 2013.