!!Wienerlieder\\
 
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 18%%sup th/%  
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.

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The real Wiener Lied reached its heyday in the 19%%sup th/%  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 19%%sup th/%  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.

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__Literature:__ L. Schmidt, Volksgesang und Volkslied, 1970; 
S. Lohr, Drum hab i Wean so gern, 1980.

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This contribution was taken from an Austrian Encyclopaedia
"Österreich Lexikon" ©  1995 by
Verlagsgemeinschaft Österreich-Lexikon.
Pictures and links (if applicable) have been removed. To view
them click the link above to get to the Austrian version.
That version is also updated more frequently.
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