Variability (folk poetry)

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In art music fixed in writing, variability denotes the planned modification to distinguish it from ( variation ). The "variant" in German studies is the "deviation from the reading of a text-critical main text" ( Metzler Literatur Lexikon , 1990). In folklore (compare literary folklore ), on the other hand, the variant is the individual, per se valid record of a traditional text or a melody.

"Variability", changeability, "singing around" is a main characteristic of a poem (and a melody) that was created and is passed down under the conditions of oral tradition . A striking example of this is the folk song , the history of which suggests not interpreting a single, fixed text, but rather keeping an eye on the entirety of many variants of a song type (the same applies to the melody; we are particularly looking at the aspects of the text). In contrast to high literature, there is no single, authorized text in folk poetry, but the content and design are updated and adapted to the milieu of the respective tradition. Variability gives the impression of improvisation.

"No singer is able to repeat the same song [especially the melody] as he just sang it" (Georg Schünemann, 1923). Umsing processes are considered a “positive feature” of the folk song (Hermann Bausinger, Formen der “Volkspoesie” , Berlin 1980, p. 269); the formation of variants is a main characteristic of the folk song (compare Hermann Strobach, in: Jahrbuch für Volksliedforschung 11 [1966], pp. 1-9; with reference to the work of Wolfgang Steinitz).

Above all, the beginning of the song varies to a great extent and, for example, in the case of the song "Auf der Eisenbahn I drove ..." in the broad spectrum of: On the Southern Railway ..., On the Wild Railway ..., On the Elbe .., On vacation ..., On the world construction [!] ..., On advertising [!] ..., On the welcome [!] ..., On the wild catch [!] ..., On the torrent. .., On the journey ..., On the sea ..., On the Ölbach ..., On the Rhine ... and so on. One reason for variability can be seen in poor hearing (“silent post”) and in the creative transformation of what is wrongly heard (collective false hearing).

However, variability is usually quite meaningful. A new rating is associated with the new text perspective and a text is thus updated. “A girl with lovely expressions, beautiful Hannchen, sat in the green ...” is accordingly, among other things: A noble girl sat at her spinner wheel ..., A poor girl sits ..., Once upon a time there was a girl who spins on his wheel ..., In the shade of green trees I sleep so softly ..., In the green forest on the Rheine, there is a girl sitting alone ..., Little Hannchen in the mill ..., Little Elschen in the mill sat one Cool evenings ... and so on. The narrated story of the song is given a certain new twist in key words (noble, poor, me, alone), which is carried on associatively between the lines and in each case conveys its own interpretation of the event.

The formulaic nature of the text, which is necessary for oral transmission, acts as a counterbalance to the variability and has to be easily transmitted in order to exist. In the narrative song as in the folk ballad , a stereotypical narrative framework is supported by epic formulas that stabilize the text, but also rob it of its individuality. Epic formulas are the most striking generic feature of the folk ballad.

The intensity of the appropriation of a song, the frequency of singing a particular song in oral tradition influences the range of variation of text and melody. The variability will also increase over long periods of time.

literature

  • Otto Holzapfel : Liedverzeichnis , Volume 1–2, Olms, Hildesheim 2006 (with further information; ISBN 3-487-13100-5 ) = Otto Holzapfel: Liedverzeichnis: The older German-language popular song tradition . Online version since January 2018 on the homepage of the Volksmusikarchiv des Bezirks Oberbayern (in PDF format; further updates planned), see lexicon file "Variability".