Page - 48 - in JRFM - Journal Religion Film Media, Volume 06/02

48 | Reinhard Kopanski www.jrfm.eu 2020, 6/2, 41–57 not remain static, for the song’s chorus expands the chord sequence through a tonally foreign A major chord. This unexpected chordal movement has the po- tential to draw the audience’s attention to the song and therefore to its lyrics. Depending on the context of the listening situation, the lyrics would not necessarily reveal that “Alles ist möglich” contains a Christian message, es- pecially given the inclusion of general phrases often found in popular music: A lyrical “I” addresses a “you”, describing her/his trust in said “you”, as the latter provides her/him with strength in difficult situations. The phrase “Ich glaub an dich”33 (I believe in you) does have religious connotations, but given that God is not explicitly mentioned, it may imply an interpersonal relation- ship, not least as both the German phrase and its English equivalent are used to give support to another person. That said, upon closer inspection certain lines do have religious connotations, suggesting “Alles ist möglich” stems from PCM: for example, the phrases “Dir ist alles möglich” (For you everything is possible) and “über Mauern springen” (to jump over walls).34 The phrase “Dir ist alles möglich” is found in the Text Bible, a translation from 1899,35 and the wording “über Mauern springen” is included in the Luther Bible.36 The full song title “Alles ist möglich” is found in the translation by Franz Eugen Schlachter.37 Historically, Bible translations have shaped the German language significantly, so the rather general wording could refer to Bible passages but could also be taken from a general German vocabulary – still, these examples are somewhat unusual for German-speaking secular popular music. Interest- ingly, the line “Alles ist möglich” offers an incidental transmedial reference to the German synchronization of the feature film Almost Famous (Cameron Crowe, US 2000), where the line is used as a salutation among “groupies”, an often pejorative term for extremely dedicated fans who sometimes seek sexual involvement with musicians or celebrities – altogether anything but a Christian context. Although Koenige & Priester most likely aimed at subtly referencing the Bible and had no intention of making any allusion to a pro- miscuous premarital life, this possible transmedial reference opens a poten- tial polysemy. However, this fluidity of meaning exists only when the song 33 “Alles ist möglich” (Heldenreise, Koenige & Priester, DE 2017, dieKoalition Label), liner notes. 34 “Alles ist möglich” (Heldenreise, Koenige & Priester, DE 2017, dieKoalition Label), liner notes. 35 Mark 14:36, Text Bible, 1899. 36 Ps. 18:30, Luther Bible, 1984. 37 Mark 9:23, Schlachter Bible.