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From: rfg@hound.UUCP (R.GRANTGES)
Newsgroups: net.music.classical
Subject: Re: music and nazism
Message-ID: <1318@hound.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 22-Aug-85 21:45:58 EDT
Article-I.D.: hound.1318
Posted: Thu Aug 22 21:45:58 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 25-Aug-85 04:09:32 EDT
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Ach! Mein Gott! Here go I getting involved in this assinine subject.

Aren't you folks confusing two entirely different songs? The old austrian
tune, immortalized by haydn, etc. is the theme of the German National
Anthem: Deutschland, Deutschland, uber alles.... think of it as like
the star spangled banner. Many germans could proudly sing that song,
before, during, and after WW II. It had no more connection with the Nazi
Party than the star strangled banner does with the republican party
with Reagan in office.
The Nazi party had another song entirely, haunting and beautiful itself,
I have no idea where it came from.  It is the "Horst Vessel" song.  Horst
was , I think, a brown shirt youth who was killed in one of the street
battles in the early 30's.  Anyhow, the song was dedicated to him and
became the official Nazi Party anthem, but not the national anthem.
Again, think, perhaps, of "Happy days are here again" and FDR, although
we americans just don't get political about our songs the way europeans
do.  I wish someone could explain the origin of the horst vessel song.
If modern, who composed it? it sounds pretty good, especially on horns.
Too bad it was ruined by its association. But I don't think that
Deutschland uber alles was ruined by association. Until I started
reading some of this stuff recently I didn't think anyone thought it was.

-- 

"It's the thought, if any, that counts!"  Dick Grantges  hound!rfg