| Protest Song in East and West Germany Since the 1960s Contributor(s): Robb, David G. (Editor), Bluhdorn, Annette (Contribution by), Robb, David G. (Contribution by) |
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ISBN: 1571132813 ISBN-13: 9781571132819 Publisher: Camden House (NY) OUR PRICE: $104.50 Product Type: Hardcover Published: September 2007 Annotation: The modern German political song is a hybrid of high and low culture. With its roots in the birth of mass culture in the 1920s, it employs communicative strategies of popular song. Yet its tendencies toward philosophical, poetic, and musical sophistication reveal intellectual aspirations. This volume looks at the influence of revolutionary artistic traditions in the lyrics and music of the Liedermacher of east and west Germany: the rediscovery of the revolutionary songs of 1848 by the 1960s West German folk revival, the use of the profane "carnivalesque" street-ballad tradition by Wolf Biermann and the GDR duo Wenzel & Mensching, the influence of 1920s artistic experimentation on Liedermacher such as Konstantin Wecker, and the legacy of Hanns Eisler's revolutionary song theory. The book also provides an insider perspective on the countercultural scenes of the two Germanys, examining the conditions in which political songs were written and performed. In view of the decline of the political song form since the fall of communism, the book ends with a look at German avant-garde techno's attempt to create a music that challenges conventional cultural perceptions and attitudes. CONTRIBUTORS: DAVID ROBB, ECKARD HOLLER, ANNETTE BLHDORN, PETER THOMPSON David Robb is Senior Lecturer in German Studies at the Queen's University of Belfast. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Literary Criticism | European - German - Music | History & Criticism - General - History | Europe - Germany |
| Dewey: 782.421 |
| LCCN: 2007013056 |
| Series: Studies in German Literature, Linguistics, and Culture |
| Physical Information: 1.1" H x 6" W x 9.1" (1.40 lbs) 328 pages |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: The modern German political song is a hybrid of high and low culture. With its roots in the birth of mass culture in the 1920s, it employs communicative strategies of popular song. Yet its tendencies toward philosophical, poetic, and musical sophistication reveal intellectual aspirations. This volume looks at the influence of revolutionary artistic traditions in the lyrics and music of the Liedermacher of east and west Germany: the rediscovery of the revolutionary songs of 1848 by the 1960s West German folk revival, the use of the profane "carnivalesque" street-ballad tradition by Wolf Biermann and the GDR duo Wenzel & Mensching, the influence of 1920s artistic experimentation on Liedermacher such as Konstantin Wecker, and the legacy of Hanns Eisler's revolutionary song theory. The book also provides an insider perspective on the countercultural scenes of the two Germanys, examining the conditions in which political songs were written and performed. In view of the decline of the political song form since the fall of communism, the book ends with a look at German avant-garde techno's attempt to create a music that challenges conventional cultural perceptions and attitudes. Contributors: David Robb, Eckard Holler, Annette Blühdorn, Peter Thompson David Robb is Senior Lecturer in German Studies at the Queen's University of Belfast. |
Contributor Bio(s): Robb, David: - David Robb is currently a Research Fellow in English, School of Humanities, College of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Dundee |