Seite - 80 - in Entangled Entertainers - Jews and Popular Culture in Fin-de-Siècle Vienna

80 | Entangled Entertainers Th e motto of the meeting at the Goldener Luchs was “Protect Vienna’s Volks- sänger!” Approximately one hundred people attended the meeting. Th ere were, however, far more than a hundred Volkssänger in the city. At this time, Vienna had approximately sixty performing groups, each of which employed several mem- bers.7 But what gave this meeting special signifi cance was the fact that the most important and most infl uential performing musicians attended. Karl Spacek, on e of the most respected artists in the Volkssänger scene, organized the assembly.8 In this sense, the gathering was an important event, which is why it would also have a far-reaching impact on all of Vienna’s Volkssänger. Th e topic of the meeting, namely the Hungarian authorities and their con- demnation of Viennese performers, had been clearly stated, and no one seemed to anticipate any disagreement. Nevertheless, the participants at the gathering broke out into fi ghts. Over the course of the meeting, a particular source of con- fl ict came to light, one that would, in the months following, continue to intensify and result in anti-Jewish statements. For this reason, the debate that took place at the Goldener Luchs and in particular the dispute’s development up until the spring of 1903 provide insight into the complex relationships between Jewish and non-Jewish Volkssänger. In this context, we must ask whether this event pro- vides a mere snapshot or whether it articulates a larger statement about the qual- ity of the interactions that occurred between Jewish and non-Jewish Volkssänger and, by extension, between Vienna’s Jewish and non-Jewish inhabitants. Confl icts among Viennese Volkssänger Disputes that often ended up in court were not uncommon among Volkssänger. In addition to the disputes that were described as a “war” at the beginning of the twentieth century, there were a number of other confl icts. Th e pronounced competitive atmosphere that characterized the folk singers’ work environment served as an ideal breeding ground for all kinds of friction. One of numerous examples that I could mention in this context concerns the lawsuit that artist Karl Schöpf brought a gainst Adolph Slusche, the o wner of a coff eehouse in the Viennese district Josefstadt. Slusche’s café was a popular meeting place for many performing musicians and was therefore commonly known as the Volkssänger- börse (Volkss änger stock exchange). Schöpf had gained a bad reputation among his colleagues, because he brokered opportunities for the artists to perform. He profi ted from the city’s oversupply of Volkssänger by taking a portion of their already scanty salary when they used his services to book a gig. When he became abusive against individual Volkssänger and insulted them, they told Slusche that they would fi nd another meeting place if he didn’t kick Schöpf out of his coff ee- house. When Slusche complied with the performers’ request and forbade Schöpf from entering the café, Schöpf felt that his honor had been injured and in turn tried to sue Slusche. Schöpf did not win the case.9 This open access edition has been made available under a CC BY 4.0 license thanks to the support of Knowledge Unlatched.