Wienerlieder
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Wiener Lied (literally: Viennese song, plural: Lieder). The earliest
evidence of the Wiener Lied can be traced back to approximately 1700;
"Ehrliche Gemuethserquickung" (Honest Refreshment for the Mind),
dated 1686, is often considered to be the oldest collection; it
consists of students' songs rather than of actual Wiener Lieder.
Several Wiener Lieder have been handed down from the 18th
century, which were sung by harpists and itinerant ballad singers.
They often contain obscene jokes (e.g. "Spittelberglieder") and
critical comments on the government and were therefore only
reluctantly tolerated by the authorities. In their early days, famous
Wiener Lieder were already published on leaflets.
The real Wiener Lied reached its heyday in the 19th century,
which is closely related to the development of Volkssaenger.The
Wiener Lied was improved in terms of language and content by
J. B. Moser and I. Nagel and social criticism and political
jokes often made poets and singers clash with censorship during the
Biedermeier period. The rise of popular entertainment during the last
quarter of the 19th century (inns and restaurants in the
Prater gardens, nightclubs, Singspiel halls, "Heuriger" wine taverns,
etc.) promoted the Wiener Lied and several songs gained great
popularity. After World War I, the Wiener Lied languished, lost
its critical features and turned into a sentimental wine tavern song.
After World War II the tradition was continued by such artists as
H. Schmid ("Schmid-Hansl"). However, the Wiener Lied was
revived around the middle of the 1970s owing to a new Wiener Lied
movement led by artists including K. Hodina, R. Neuwirth, T. Mally
and others.
Literature: L. Schmidt, Volksgesang und Volkslied, 1970;
S. Lohr, Drum hab i Wean so gern, 1980.
