Low German songs

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Low German songs (often also Low German songs ) are songs whose texts are written in Low German . Low German songs became popular especially from the 19th century.

Distribution area

The area from which Low German songs originate largely corresponds to the distribution area of ​​the Low German language, especially in Westphalia , Lower Saxony , Bremen , Schleswig-Holstein , Hamburg , Mecklenburg and historic Pomerania , and more in rural areas than cities. There are also numerous songs in Plautdietschen , which is spoken by many Russian Germans , among others .

history

Origins

Klaus Groth, woodcut

Low German songs have been around for several centuries, but for a long time they were hardly documented. In the middle of the 19th century, North German poetry began to reflect on local values, especially the Low German language. Of the two best-known poets who wrote in Low German, Fritz Reuter (1810–1874) and Klaus Groth (1819–1899), it was Groth who concentrated on poems that could be set to music. This is how Matten Has , Lütt Anna-Susanna and De Junge Wetfru became folk songs . Arnold Schönberg (1874–1951) composed the song Ei du Lütte based on a text by Groth. Fritz Reuter's poem De Eikbom and Theodor Storm's Gode ​​Nacht also became known as folk songs. The text of the folk song Wo de Ostseewellen comes from Martha Müller-Grählert . The song was first printed in a song collection in 1907 and soon also became popular in the Wo de Nordseewellen version .

Numerous other Low German songs come from unknown authors, such as the love song Dat du min Leevsten büst , the political song Jan Hinnerk , which was written in Hamburg during the occupation by Napoleonic troops from 1806, and the mocking song Pastor sien Kauh , several of which a hundred stanzas exist. The mostly Low German shanty Hamborger Veermaster was probably composed in the middle of the 19th century by seafarers on the song Banks of Sacramento .

Rediscovery

As early as 1965, the Hamburg group Die City Preachers recorded the song Ik hebbe se nich from East Friesland for their album Folklore . Here improvised John O'Brien-Docker on the acoustic guitar . In the context of the rediscovery of German folk songs by folk musicians in the early 1970s, Low German songs became extremely popular. In 1973, the former jazz and pop singer Knut Kiesewetter, who lives in North Friesland , released his album You shouldn't forget me, which contains a piece in Low German and one in Fering . As a result, other albums were released by artists who had grown up in North Friesland or, like Hannes Wader , had moved here. In 1974 Wader's album Plattdeutsche Lieder appeared , on which he sometimes sings songs in Low German, most of which are based on texts by Klaus Groth. For some pieces he had written his own compositions in folk style or adapted melodies. De Moel's melody comes from the Irish folk title Kelly The Boy From Killane . The album sold so well that further folk albums with Low German music were created in the period that followed. The singer and songwriter Fiede Kay , a school friend of Kiesewetter, brought out numerous albums with Low German songs from 1975. Kiesewetter himself published LPs with songs sung in Low German until 1987. In 1976, Leeder vun mien Fresenhof appeared, which contains Low German songs on the A side and North Frisian songs on the B side and was awarded a gold record . His sister Sigrun Kiesewetter also sang in Low German and released the album Över de stillen Straaten in 1975 , which contains several songs by Theodor Storm and Klaus Groth as well as two Frisian songs. Hein Hoop was one of the copywriters . The Hamburg rock musician Achim Reichel released Dat Shanty Alb'm in 1976 and the album Klabautermann in 1977 , which contain some shanties sung in Low German.

The East Frisian actor Siemen Rühaak was briefly active as a Low German singer. His album Leevtalligheed was released around 1973. Helmut Debus , who lives in Brake, north-west of Bremen , has been successful with songs sung in Low German and also performed in folk style since 1976 . To date he has released numerous albums. Other Low German singing artists of this style came from East Frisia, such as Jan Cornelius and the band Laway . In 1977 the first long-playing record with Low German songs from East Frisia was made, see East Frisian songwriters . 1983 Laway received for her album Laat jo nich unnerkriegen the Prize of the German Record Critics .

In Mecklenburg, songs sung in Low German also became popular in the folk scene. The duo Piatkowski & Rieck sang in Low German from 1977 and released two long-playing records. In their songs they address serious topics such as the time of National Socialism, but also sing traditional Low German songs. The chansonnier Kurt Nolze also sang Low German lyrics. In 1984 his album Över de stillen Straaten was released in the GDR ; later Nolze wrote more Low German pieces.

In the course of the rediscovery of Low German songs, bands emerged in both German states that were more inclined to folk music . In 1981 the group Godewind was founded in Schleswig-Holstein , which mainly sings its own songs. In the same year the Rostock group De Plattfööt was formed , which, like Godewind, is more committed to the more cheerful side of life. From 1976 onwards, the theater and folklore group Finkwarder Speeldeel , which had existed since 1906, also published regular albums, mostly with Low German songs. From 1984 to 2012 the group Speelwark existed , which also interpreted folk, mostly Low German songs.

Ina Müller (2008)

While interpreters singing in Low German remained popular in the GDR beyond the fall of the Berlin Wall , the folk wave in the Federal Republic of Germany had died down in the mid-1980s, so that hardly any new albums were made in Low German. In 1997 Mien Boom steiht appeared here by the West Pomeranian Gerd Christian , who is otherwise known as a pop singer. The Hamburg singer and presenter Ina Müller published the albums Die schallPlatte and Die Schallplatte - nied opleggt in 2004 and 2009 , on which she made cover versions of popular music classics , such as Veel to old as a version of the Sting title Fields of Gold , as well as her own pieces in Low German Language sings. The CD reached number 13 on the German album charts . The Hamburg Tüdelband has been playing Low German songs as so-called “Platt-Pop” since 2009. The hardcore punk band COR from the island of Rügen released the album Snack platt orrer dies in 2012 . The Bremen hip-hop formation De fofftig Penns coined the term Dialektro for Low German hip-hop with electronic elements . In addition, they won seventh place in the 2013 Bundesvision Song Contest for Bremen with the Low German title Löppt .

There are also a number of musicians who published songs with Plautdietschen lyrics. In addition to the singers who interpret Low German songs as professional musicians, Low German songs are sung by amateur choirs and at festivals. At the same time one tries to encourage the pupils in the area where the Low German language is distributed to sing Low German songs.

Prizes and competitions

The Bad Bevensen Prize for vocal and instrumental design and interpretation has been awarded in Bad Bevensen since 1985 . The first award winner was Helmut Debus , followed by Piatkowski & Rieck . Other award winners included the Dragseth duo , Jochen Wiegandt , the Laway group , Jan Graf , Otto Groote and Gerrit Hoss . Since 2008, the prize has only been awarded every four years and is endowed with 2000 euros.

The Plattsounds music competition for amateur bands from Lower Saxony has been taking place since 2011 . Young musicians between the ages of 15 and 30 are allowed, only their own songs may be played. In 2017 a similar competition started with Plattbeats , which is not limited to one federal state, but whose focus is on Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein.

Some prizes are dedicated to the preservation of the Low German language and also honor musicians. Such was January Cornelius among the winners of the Keerlke Prize . The Heinrich Schmidt Barrien Prize was awarded to Jan Cornelius, Godewind and Ina Müller , among others . The musicians Helmut Debus, Ina Müller as part of the cabaret duo " Queen Bee ", Jan Graf and Annie Heger received the Low German Literature Prize of the city of Kappeln .

literature

  • Heike Müns (ed.): Low German song book. Folk songs from five centuries. Hinstorff, Rostock 1981
  • Heike Müns (Ed.): Dat du mien Leewsten büst: 200 Low German songs from the past and present. Hinstorff, Rostock 1988, ISBN 3-356-00077-2
  • Members of the Association for Low German Language Research: Low German Song Book. Leopold Voss, Hamburg / Leipzig 1884, Textarchiv - Internet Archive

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ cf. Heike Müns (ed.): Low German song book. Popular songs from 5 centuries. Hinstorff, Rostock 1981
  2. ↑ Extract from the folk song archive , accessed on December 27, 2015
  3. ↑ Heike Müns: A few hundred selected old and new stanzas by Mr. Pasturn sien Kauh. Hinstorff, Rostock 2001, ISBN 3-356-00923-0
  4. ^ Cover of the City Preachers CD Folklore , 1998, new edition of the LP of the same name from 1966
  5. ^ Website of Knut Kiesewetter ; Retrieved May 9, 2011
  6. ↑ article in Folker; Retrieved May 9, 2011
  7. ↑ title information at cd-lexikon.de; Retrieved May 9, 2011
  8. ^ Abendblatt.de: Ina Müller storms the charts with a Low German CD , November 10, 2009
  9. ↑ List of CDs by plautdietsch singing musicians ; Retrieved May 10, 2011
  10. ↑ platt-is-cool.de accessed on May 9, 2011
  11. ^ School law in Schleswig-Holstein ; Retrieved May 10, 2011