Vortrag – Auferstanden aus Ruinen/Raised from ruins
Introduction:
• Listen to the hymn
• Hymn points out typical aspects of a county
• Presentation of the hymn to understand the GDR a little bit better
Main Part:
Text:
• Text is from Johannes R. Becher
• Written in October 1949
• Hymn should be for the hole population an should represent more peace than militarism
• Should also attract people in the BRD
• Criticized because the hymn was not patriotic enough
• Text is written that it fits to the melody of the Austrian “Kaiserhymne”
Melody:
• From Hanns Eisler made in a few days in October & November 1949
• To this melody it is also possible to sing the “Deutschlandlied”
• In my point of view this expresses that the artist, not the members of parties in the GDR believed in unification of Germany. The possibility to sing “Auferstanden aus Ruinen” to the melody of the “Deutschlandlied” and the other way around links the GDR and BRD in an incomparable way.
• Eisler‘ s melody is very human – contrast to the rising could war
• An other melody was made by Ottmar Gerster, but on 8th February 1950 the “Volkskammer” voted for Hanns Eislers propose
• The content of the text was organized by SED members in the “Kulturbund”
The GDR integrated the hymn in the school and it was played very often on public assemblies, festivals or concerts
In the 1970’s the GDR does not liked the text anymore because there is written “Deutschland, einig Vaterland” and there were often questions from BRD politicians like Willy Brandt concerning the reunification. From these times until the reunification the GDR only performed their hymn instrumental.
Reunification:
• Proposed to make Brecht’s “Kinderhymne (Anmut sparet nicht noch Mühe)” to the new hymn of the unified Germany (melody also from Hanns Eisler)
• Propose from Lothar de Maizére to add the first stanza of the GDR hymn to the third stanza of the BRD hymn
• None of them realized
Conclusion:
• Today our hymn is the BRD hymn – people from the GDR are no equals
• Text of the GDR hymn gives an detailed impression of the people’s faith in reunification
(“Deutschland, einig Vaterland”)
• “Einigkeit und Recht und Freiheit” fits very well after Germanys reunification
• To conclude, from the beginning on it was clear, that the German nation cannot have two national hymns, or, to say it more clearly, that the German nation cannot be divided into two parts. That’s what we learned from “Auferstanden aus Ruinen.”
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