4th Group 20th Century

20th Century Music, Theater and Dance

comparing late 20th century German music with United States' music

THE ERA: 80's

bruce springsteen

peter maffay

. . . Need I say more?

Enough of the funny business in 20th century Germany music was mainly controlled for the first half of the century.  Many german composers left to the United States when the nazi party was in control.  The nazi party set out to rid of any art that had any link to Jewish culture. Many musicians and play writers  left in fear of persecution do to over analyzation.  In the second half of the 20th century west german composers focused on the more avant garde style and in east germany composers were told to focus on keeping up with the tenets of socialist realism, Socialist realism is a style of realistic art which was developed in the Soviet Union and became a dominant style in other communist countries. Socialist realism is a teleologically-oriented style having its purpose the furtherance of the goals of socialism and communism. Although related, it should not be confused with social realism, a type of art that realistically depicts subjects of social concern. Unlike social realism, socialist realism often glorifies the roles of the poor. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socialist_Realism)

underground music scene

during the war and post war

Folk music in the East German regime was promoted  as long as it was what they saw as an expression of pure German tradition, and a tool for spreading party propaganda.

In both East and West Germany, folk songs called volkslieder were taught to children; these were popular, sunny and optimistic, and had little relation to authentic German folk traditions. Inspired by American and English roots revivals, Germany underwent many of the same changes following the 1968 student revolution in West Germany, and new songs, featuring political activism and realistic joy, sadness and passion, were written and performed on the burgeoning folk scene. In East Germany, the same process did not begin until the mid-70s, when folk musicians began incorporating revolutionary ideas in coded songs.