NEUE ZEITEN ALTE ZEICHEN
Hubert von Goisern: Live in St. Margarethen
Hubert von Goisern: Live in St. Margarethen - 9 September 2023
Photo: © Andreas Schnitzlhuber | Scan Pictures
Hubert von Goisern: Live in St. Margarethen - 9 September 2023
Photo: © Andreas Schnitzlhuber | Scan Pictures
Hubert von Goisern: Live in St. Margarethen - 9 September 2023
Photo: © Andreas Schnitzlhuber | Scan Pictures
Hubert von Goisern: Live in St. Margarethen - 9 September 2023
Photo: © Andreas Schnitzlhuber | Scan Pictures
Hubert von Goisern: Live in St. Margarethen - 9 September 2023
Photo: © Andreas Schnitzlhuber | Scan Pictures
Hubert von Goisern: Live in St. Margarethen - 9 September 2023
Photo: © Andreas Schnitzlhuber | Scan Pictures
Hubert von Goisern: Live in St. Margarethen - 9 September 2023
Photo: © Andreas Schnitzlhuber | Scan Pictures
Hubert von Goisern: Live in St. Margarethen - 9 September 2023
Photo: © Andreas Schnitzlhuber | Scan Pictures
Hubert von Goisern: Live in St. Margarethen - 9 September 2023
Photo: © Andreas Schnitzlhuber | Scan Pictures
Hubert von Goisern: Live in St. Margarethen - 9 September 2023
Photo: © Andreas Schnitzlhuber | Scan Pictures
Hubert von Goisern: Live in St. Margarethen - 9 September 2023
Photo: © Andreas Schnitzlhuber | Scan Pictures
Hubert von Goisern: Live in St. Margarethen - 9 September 2023
Photo: © Andreas Schnitzlhuber | Scan PicturesHubert von Goisern – A strong finish
Hubert von Goisern celebrated a triumphant farewell on Saturday at the sold-out quarry in St Margarethen. It was the final show with the sensational band which he has been performing with for almost 17 years. One of this country's great musicians is retiring from the stage.
Hubert von Goisern and his powerful band immediately nailed the theme of this special summer evening in the dreamy setting of the old quarry: "An so am Tag wie heit, wann die Musi aufgeigt, do is da Himmel ganz breit, und da feiern ma mit alle Leit" ("On a day like today, when the music plays and the sky is wide, we celebrate with everyone".)
It was both beautiful and sad. At the end, after the final note had rung out and the 5000 fans celebrated Hubert von Goisern and his band with a standing ovation, it was hard to hold it in, as it was all highly emotional. The band members fell into each other's arms and bowed one final time before the cheering crowd.
"As is so often the case in my life, I don't really know what's next", says Hubert von Goisern in an exclusive interview with Ö3 before the show. "I just know that it's over." As has happened a few times before in his career, Hubert von Goisern pulls the plug right at the top of his game. The feeling of sadness is accordingly deep: "Every journey comes to an end at some point", he says, "but that doesn't mean that you can't travel together again one day – but that's speculative. I can dream, but I don't speculate."
He will certainly miss Maria Moling (percussion), Alex Pohn (drums), Helmut Schartlmüller (bass), Alex Trebo (keyboard) and Severin Trogbacher (guitar) as sensational fellow musicians, but most of all as dear friends.
During Heast as nit, performed as an encore together with heldentenor Andreas Schager, as befit the occasion, many in the audience shed tears. Hubert von Goisern himself sees the message of the song much more clearly: "It's a song beyond past and future, it's about transience. And it's not the case that what I once put into words has now come true - no, it was always true."
Hubert von Goisern's farewell concert
The singer ended his tour in St. Margarethen – and perhaps it's also the end of his career in this form. Wagner star Andreas Schager accompanied him.
St. Margarethen. The voice was on tour with them for a good two years, without the person to whom it belongs. "We wouldn't have been able to afford him", says Hubert von Goisern, and adds that the singer had been very busy in Bayreuth anyway. "So it was a surprise when he called and said that he had time."
The audience at the quarry in St. Margarethen was surprised, too, when Wagner tenor Andreas Schager appeared on stage to add his voice to Freunde … (das Leben ist lebenswert): the rap about the friends Franz Lehár and Fritz Löhner-Beda. The latter died in Auschwitz, the former let it happen.
A worthy highlight
It was the final concert on Goisern's Neue Zeiten Alte Zeichen tour. As for whether he'd be back or not, he didn't say. He celebrated this farewell in his typical straightforward manner: "I assume that you know all the new lyrics", he said at the start. "Although it actually doesn't matter, because I don't like it when people sing along."
But he made an exception: in his homage to Nina Simone's gospel Sinnerman, he let everyone join in. Otherwise, his command was most welcome, be it in his sarcastic new persiflages (Brauner Reiter, El Ektro), on the journey to Gombe in the song that he wrote in the nineties after a visit to Jane Goodall, or with the yodel called Dem Kohler seiner, because Kohler, a lumberjack, had always sung it. "And in that regard, I must say something about gendering. It was always clear to me that they were a man. But when you start to speak differently, you start to think differently too and then you think: it could have been a woman."
The end? "I don't know!"
"How will I feel when I draw a line under it all in St. Margarethen? I don't know yet", Hubert von Goisern had said to the "Presse" back in the spring. "As always, when something comes to an end, there's great melancholy. But it means that doors and windows are opened and I'm curious to see what comes next."
Rockfall on the way to the summit
A concert akin to a challenging mountain hike: Hubert von Goisern and his exquisite band play the Killesberg open air stage in Stuttgart.
Hubert von Goisern's second most beautiful song is 31 years old: he plays Heast as nit at the Killesberg open air stage with his exquisite band as the penultimate encore. His most beautiful song was released three years ago on the most recent studio album Zeiten & Zeichen: he sings the soulful masterpiece Dunkelrot right at the end, accompanying himself only with an acoustic guitar, which pays homage to a love that overcomes death.
He doesn't make the two-and-a-half-hour journey towards perfect beauty easy for the crowd of 3000: you could compare his sold-out concert in Stuttgart to a challenging mountain hike to an exhilarating summit. This comparison makes sense, since the musician was born 70 years ago in Bad Goisern as Hubert Achleitner and once found fame as an alpine rocker.
In the first half of the concert he proves that he has left both the genre he founded and the long-celebrated moniker world music behind him, presenting the new album with energetic, powerful, bass-heavy rock music in an intoxicatingly inspired yet very meticulous style: "Setzt di her zu mir, egal wer du a bist" ("Come sit with me, no matter who you are"), he sings in A Tag wie heut with his determined, striving, mountain-moving voice. But on this climb to the mountain hut lurk rockfall, or at the very least, bad weather: the power of nature is underscored by a revved-up smoke machine, stroboscopic flashing lights and the kick drum of the exceptional drummer Alex Pohn, its sound mixed high and very close to the pain threshold. An older gentleman in row 6, clearly concerned for his hearing, covers his his ears for long periods of the concert, but uses his hands to gratefully applaud between the songs.
The audience is willing to shoulder heavy rucksacks in the first half of the concert: in El Ektro they are bombarded with dozens of repetitions of the "le" syllable and harsh electronic music. In Eiweiß, the precise and creative bassist Helmut Schartlmüller and virtuoso guitarist Severin Trogbacher on the ukulele have come up with carnivalesque choreographed steps. In Brauner Reiter savvy keyboarder Alex Trebo squeezes a sprawling solo into the heavy metal feel of the song. Before the song Freunde ... (das Leben ist lebenswert) Hubert von Goisern pleads against moaning, known as "sudern" in Austria. When he's not listening with outstretched arms to the recorded voice of Heldentenor Andreas Schager, he raps, and in Sünder the audience is called upon to shout "power!" a few times. Hubert von Goisern may have thought that when in doubt, a touch of disorientation makes the climb all the more exciting.
After the presentation of the new album, beyond the treeline so to speak, Hubert von Goisern covers three decades of his career in five songs, and then, in the encores, it turns beautiful, especially in the magical trio Spåt, Weit, weit weg and Heast as nit: Maria Moling, the splendid percussionist, whose accents on the vibraphone are particularly notable, yodels together with Hubert von Goisern. Later, the man himself scares away dark clouds with enchantingly passionate trumpet and accordion playing. Hearing Dunkelrot live is the final gift that corresponds to a stunning view from the top. Hubert von Goisern clearly doesn't think much of simply taking the cable car.
Hubert von Goisern at the Hanau Amphitheater: Alpine rebel and world musician
Hubert von Goisern's concert raises the roof of the sold-out Hanau Amphitheater. The former alpine rebel and multi-talented world musician is genre-spanning, richly faceted, cosmopolitan and has remained willingly disruptive with his songs – simply great.
Hanau. Holding his tongue is not Hubert von Goisern's thing. He still sings the protest songs from earlier years because they remain necessary - the people might have changed, but the problems have not. Von Goisern doesn't play the old songs until the end of the concert and the encores.
A genre-spanning performance
He enters the stage alone with his Styrian accordion and begins. Solide Alm is the title of the opener. The other members of the band casually chime in and immediately flash their talent. Neue Zeiten und Alte Zeichen is the motto of the tour, but Hubert von Goisern is in the mood for something new. Regarding the song A Tag wie heut, von Goisern declares that many in the crowd will have been looking forward to this evening for a long time, will have learned the lyrics by heart and if not, it's not a problem. "I don't want to go somewhere where I know exactly what awaits me. I look forward to new things." And he starts with the question: "Do you want to dance?" "I don't want to dance." El Ektro follows, which serves the electronic music genre perfectly and is yet completely and utterly von Goisern.
The queen of the night in von Goisern's colour palette is Dunkelblau (Dark Blue). After that, the man from the Salzkammergut demands Eiweiß (Protein), meat and sweets. And clapping along is certainly welcome, though not until after a quick lesson from the master. "The bar has four beats, you clap on two and four." Certainly never on one and three. "That's for people who want to march. Or for Musikantenstadl." Hard sounds and distorted guitars accompany the sentiment. The Brauner Reiter (Brown Rider) has been travelling for too long, searching for the holy grail.
The voice of star tenor Andreas Schager
Next, the multi-instrumentalist heralds a voice, though the singer is not to be seen. The Wagner tenor Andreas Schager recorded Freunde, das Leben ist lebenswert for von Goisern. The latter outed himself as an opera-lover. He had wanted to go to Bayreuth for the Wagner festival, but "the tickets are unbelievably expensive" – more expensive than he was prepared to pay. Even if those tickets promised a special experience. A friend ultimately gave him tickets for Parsival. He marvelled at the fact that the doors were locked from the inside. That would never happen in Austria; Austrians can't be locked up.
Via Andreas Schager, he came to Franz Lehár's melody. But no doubt this was still going to be covered by copyright. Von Goisern did his research and discovered that the lyricist was murdered in Auschwitz. It was Bedrich Löwy, who later changed his name to Fritz Löhner, though as a Jew this did not protect him from the atrocities of the Nazis. Löhner lived in Vienna, was a star Austrian football player and gave Lehár the most beautiful songs as a librettist, schlager lyricist and writer. Von Goisern doesn't fail to mention that Lehár distanced himself from his friend Löhner. The monumental piece that includes Schager's voice is not a homage to Lehár, but to Löhner, whose entire family was killed by the Nazis.
"Where will we run on the final day? Who set this fire?" von Goisern holds a mirror up to society. The song is progressive rock of the finest kind. And Sünder (Sinner) goes through the roof for over ten minutes, the band playing at the highest level. "Power!!!" they call, borrowing from Nina Simone's Sinnerman – a piece that von Goisern had long wanted to play, but hadn't dared to. After jamming with the band, he had the courage to take it on stage. "You can do it all with this band!" Guitarist Severin Trogbacher, drummer Alex Pohn, bassist Helmut Schartlmüller, percussionist Maria de Val and keyboarder Alex Trebo make sure of it. The musicians shine in various solos - magnificent.
Hubert von Goisern then reaches into a treasure chest of hits that goes back more than 30 years. He tells of his meetings with Jane Goodall and her chimpanzees, which provided the music on the album Gombe. The yodel from the Salzkammergut is Dem Kohler seiner and is a flashback to von Goisern's folksy roots.
The songs that we have to keep singing
Iawaramoi und Brenna tuats guat are two more of the songs that he must continue to sing in the face of an unchanging society. Von Goisern has made political statements in his songs early on, presenting himself as an alpine rebel sharing inconvenient truths, all the more so since he has a very broad horizon as a globetrotter who is often drawn to distant lands.
For example, von Goisern played in Egypt with Mohamed Mounir, an unforgettable experience. It made him aware to the fact that the sun is always rising somewhere – Ein neuer Tag (A New Day).
Anyone who takes the song Spät (Late) as a prompt to leave would miss the wonderful ballad Weit, weit weg and the rousing Heast as nit. Dunkelrot – a solo piece, quiet, and a farewell from the great master in excellent singer-songwriter style.
The audience has experienced a great world musician, master of all genres, who switches between them expertly and sets off musical fireworks with a fantastic band.
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Altusried
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Altusried - 25 August 2023
Foto: © Chris Heidrich
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Altusried - 25 August 2023
Foto: © Chris Heidrich
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Altusried - 25 August 2023
Foto: © Chris Heidrich
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Altusried - 25 August 2023
Foto: © Chris Heidrich
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Altusried - 25 August 2023
Foto: © Chris Heidrich
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Altusried - 25 August 2023
Foto: © Chris Heidrich
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Altusried - 25 August 2023
Foto: © Chris Heidrich
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Altusried - 25 August 2023
Foto: © Chris HeidrichHubert von Goisern signs the Golden Book of the city of Graz
At the start of his first concert on 16 August, the rain fell on the crowd of 2500 in the Karmeliterplatz, though it did nothing to dampen the mood and Graz was able to experience an unforgettable evening with world musician Hubert von Goisern. Duly elated, the artist came to the Graz Town Hall at the invitation of Mayor Elke Kahr, where in the City Senate Hall he signed the city's Golden Book to mark his Neue Zeiten Alte Zeichen tour.
"Heast as nit...?", Hubert von Goisern wrote below his name, in reference to one of his most well-known songs. And: "It is and always has been a ball to play in Graz!" He had heard only good things about the city's culture initiatives, the artist said. In her remarks, the emphasised his "open regard for cultural creatives in the local scene". Hubert Achleitner, who was born on 17 November 1952, made his most recent artistic stop at the Stefaniensaal in April 2022 ("The hall is fantastic"). In previous years he has performed at the Orpheum, the Listhalle and the Messe Graz, among others.
Long before he embarked on a musical career, the Upper Austrian completed an apprenticeship as a chemical laboratory assistant in Graz, learned to play the guitar and travelled the world. Through the traditional music of the countries in which he lived, such as South Africa, Canada and the Philippines, he found his own musical style, combining the folk music of his home country with traditional elements of other cultures.
Hubert von Goisern up close and personal in Graz
In the first of his three sold-out concerts at the Karmeliterplatz in Graz, Hubert von Goisern shows the quickest connection between heart and mind once again with his kaleidoscopic music.
"Hello! Hi Graz! It looks cold from up here!" Hubert von Goisern greeted the crowd of little caped figures, as the weather on Wednesday evening (16 August) initially threw a spanner in the works of the first of his three concert at the Karmeliterplatz. Organiser Manfred "Cook" Koch is aiming to establish the square as a playground for upscale entertainment for summers to come. A successful baptism of fire, despite the humidity.
The fastest path between heart and mind is music. Hubert von Goisern confirms this once more. Especially with his music. The current tour programme is called Neue Zeiten Alte Zeichen and together with his formidably cast quintet the 70-year-old takes himself at his word. It's always about today (and tomorrow), with the experience of yesterday in mind.
The best example of this is his homage to Fritz Löhner-Beda (1883-1942), the Jewish operetta librettist, who, along with his family, was killed by the Nazis. He seemed to be forgotten, not just for early companions like Franz Lehár. No Land of Smiles: I'd like to see anyone else naturally weave together this story of downfall, featuring a short clip of popular song Freunde, das Leben ist lebenswert from Lehár's Giuditta, sung by Austrian star tenor Andreas Schager, standing in this year in Bayreuth, with a rap.
Hubert von Goisern thrills with diversity in Jena
Hubert von Goisern thrills audience in Ötigheim
At 3700 spectators, Hubert von Goisern's concert in Ötigheim is sold out. The alpine rocker is in a great mood and explains the connection between Bayreuth and an ashram.
"New times, old signs" is the name of alpine rocker Hubert von Goisern's current tour. On Saturday evening the Austrian artist and his band made an appearance in Ötigheim. With a crowd of 3700, the Volksschauspiele was sold out.
The frontman enters the sparingly lit stage punctually at 8pm. He takes up his accordion and plays the first notes of his incomparable music. Sure enough, the first round of thunderous applause erupts. Solide Alm is the first piece of the evening and it carries the fans straight into the band's typical musical cosmos.
Aside from hard rock and techno elements, this cosmos repeatedly bears folklore traits. Alongside electric guitar, bass, drums and vocals, Goisern takes up the trumpet, flute and accordion and sometimes skilfully yodels too.
Goisern is not just a first-class musician, who is master of numerous instruments, he's also a very inventive entertainer: "Hello everyone, hi Baden," the 70-year-old greets his fans.
"I assume you're all well-prepared and know your cues". At one point von Goisern says that he enjoys listening to the music of Richard Wagner. "Sure, Wagner drags on, but you can also sit meditating for days in an ashram," he explains and declares: "Bayreuth is an ashram too", making the audience laugh.
The song Freunde gets the audience on their feet for the first time that evening, a song that is once again rewarded with enthusiastic applause. In it, von Goisern tells the story of Bedrich Löwy – "who had the gift of crowning music with his rhymes", as the lyrics go. In 1913 Löwy met composer Franz Lehár. And even though this man had a good relationship with Hitler and the Nazis, he made no effort to stop Löwy's deportation to Buchenwald as "the banality of evil spilled across Austria".
The artist also has stories to tell about his other songs and compositions, such as the Afrika Overture. This piece came from visiting the famous primate researcher Jane Goodall in Tanzania and making a film about her.
The crowd were well-entertained, with the band presenting a total of 20 songs without interval. A highlight is of course Weit, weit weg, in which the audience take over the refrain, word-perfect. For the final songs, von Goisern summons them right to the stage. Many are brandishing their mobiles, their lit displays creating a unique atmosphere. Delighted, and with long-lasting applause, they say farewell to von Goisern and his band and head off into the rainy Ötigheim night.
Goisern defies the rain at the Old Salt Works
He may have played one of his final concerts. On Saturday Hubert von Goisern made a guest appearance at the Alte Saline in Bad Reichenhall. In the afternoon everything was still sunny in the spa town, but come late afternoon - rights as doors opened - two huge rain storms moved across the open air arena.
Hubert von Goisern: "Friends, life is worth living"
3000 spectators at the concert at the Alte Saline
It rained, umbrellas were not permitted in the arena and there was no Plan B. Hubert von Goisern's concert in the saltworks courtyard in Bad Reichenhall in Berchtesgaden was set to take place in the open air whatever the weather. A brief power outage on Saturday evening was just what the 3,000 or so visitors needed as it gave them the chance to shelter and protect themselves for a while with the rain ponchos provided by the organiser. The crowd of 3000 didn't mind the adverse conditions at all and were full of anticipation for the concert.
Just as a brief power cut was resolved, fortunately, the rain stopped too. The support act Marcus Hinterberger from Hinterglemm, who won the Hubert von Goisern Culture Award in 2022, began at 8.10pm, almost an hour and a half later than advertised. Echoing the style of his great role model, he packaged socio-critical thoughts in his musical stories sung in dialect and High German. The Ischgl-Blues had first made him famous.
Homeland sound, rock music and electro pop
For the main act starting at 8.45pm the musicians then pulled out all the stops, at the highest level – professionality does pay off in music entertainment too. Hubert von Goisern plays numerous instruments, including the diatonic accordion, guitar and trumpet. Homeland sound, rock music, electropop (El Ektro) and rap (Freunde, das Leben ist lebenswert) hide within his "new folk music", so-called alpine rock.
The exceptional artist has important contacts in his network, such as the Wagner tenor Andreas Schager, who's currently singing Parsifal in Bayreuth, or Jane Goodall, whose concern for nature and animal protection is more relevant today than ever before. The fact that his meaningful songs are based on hard work was particularly evident in Freunde, das Leben ist lebenswert with an unusual origin story. The operetta aria from the opera Giuditta by Franz Lehár appealed to him as a contrast to the negative "whining" of the media. He found out that the librettist Fritz Löhner-Beda / Bedrich Löwy was killed in Auschwitz in 1942. From these events and Hubert von Goisern's honest emotions came the song about the biography of the lyricist, the friend of Franz Lehár, with instrumental melody samples from Freunde, das Leben ist lebenswert. This motivational claim as the chorus, sung in the style of the operetta fulfils a different purpose from what was initially intended: it's not just about the harrowing story of love for life and the ability to wrest all that is good from it. In comparison to the fate of the Jew Bedrich Löwy alias Fritz Löhner-Beda, there is something sarcastic in the proclamation. This, together with the image of the "burning swans" as his wife and two daughters flew heavenwards before him, gave the concert an unforeseen depth. The light show with its changing, star-shaped cones of light in different colours as well as the projections fantastically underscored each musical statement.
No familiar songs until the encores
Band members Maria Moling alias De Val, vocals and percussion, Severin Trogbacher, guitar, Alessandro Trebo, keyboards, Alexander Pohn, drums, Helmut Schartlmüller, bass, showed that they can accompany stories with their music, in the way that they play together but especially through their virtuosic solos. They demonstrated how to spread enthusiasm in the courtyard of the saltworks with technical perfection. Not only is every seat of the space occupied, it feels like every centimetre is filled with people.
Hubert von Goisern doesn't play his familiar songs such as Brenna tuats guat, Weit, weit weg, Heast as net until the encores. But older songs are part of the main show too, "because they're still current".
He began with A Tag wie heut and with the urgent message: no matter what skin colour, religion or political mindset – we're all the same. In his lyrics he swings between melancholy and irony and addresses current topics, such as in the song Eiweiß, about the protein a polar bear demands, even though he would "so love to be a vegan and just lick stones". Sometimes a laugh gets stuck in your throat.
In Sünder, the singer poses questions about the future and expresses fears, which he wants to silence with the striking exclamation "Power!!!!!!" He admonishes the Brown Rider to "not get attached to these sick things". Instead, he should join him in singing new songs.
Aspects of time and memory appear in Future Memories. This song in particular shows his intention to make people aware of life's important things and to convey his values as a lyricist. In the contrasting pair Dunkelblau and Dunkelrot, he sings about love from different perspectives. Hubert von Goisern – preacher, poet, missionary too in a way, and of course an outstanding musician. A top class concert with depth.
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Bad Reichenhall
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Bad Reichenhall - 29. Juli 2023
Photo: © Sarah Marchant
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Bad Reichenhall - 29. Juli 2023
Photo: © Sarah Marchant
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Bad Reichenhall - 29. Juli 2023
Photo: © Sarah Marchant
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Bad Reichenhall - 29. Juli 2023
Photo: © Sarah Marchant
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Bad Reichenhall - 29. Juli 2023
Photo: © Sarah Marchant
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Bad Reichenhall - 29. Juli 2023
Photo: © Sarah Marchant
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Bad Reichenhall - 29. Juli 2023
Photo: © Sarah Marchant
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Bad Reichenhall - 29. Juli 2023
Photo: © Sarah Marchant
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Bad Reichenhall - 29. Juli 2023
Photo: © Sarah Marchant
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Bad Reichenhall - 29. Juli 2023
Photo: © Sarah Marchant
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Bad Reichenhall - 29. Juli 2023
Photo: © Sarah Marchant
Hubert von Goisern: Live in Bad Reichenhall - 29. Juli 2023
Photo: © Sarah MarchantBoth wide awake and far, far away with Hubert von Goisern
The ever-young-at-heart multi-instrumentalist (70) and his band delight the crowd at OÖN-Konzertsommer at Burg Clam
Styrian singer Zelda Weber, who opened the evening with her band The Rosettes, has a velvety blues voice that gets under your skin. Two-and-a-half hours later, the night at Burg Clam turned from dark red (Dunkelrot) to black as Hubert von Goisern picks up the guitar to bid his fans farewell with a simple love song.
Together with his brilliant band – Severin Trogbacher (electric guitar, violin), Alex Trebo (keyboard), Alex Pohn (drums), Helmut Schartlmüller (bass) and singer and percussionist Maria Moling, the young-at-heart multi-instrumentalist (70) gives the audience an unforgettable summer's night.
Many a message is inscribed within the mix of folk music, hearty blues rock and elegiac ballads – many songs are from the albums Zeiten & Zeichen and Derweil 2 – and they all congregate under the sign of peace that shines next to the stage. But first, everyone is invited to celebrate on A Tag wie heut (A Day Like Today). "Do you want to dance?" Hubert asks, and the field briefly turns into a disco, before the stage turns ominously red and his Brauner Reiter (Brown Rider) takes flight from neo-fascism.
His warning is underpinned by Freunde, about the fate of Fritz Löhner-Beda, the librettist of Lehár's operetta Giuditta, who fell victim to the Nazis. "Friends, life is worth living," tenor Andreas Schager belts out on a recording. He is currently performing Parsifal in Bayreuth, where Hubert met him: "Bayreuth is very strange." Because they lock the doors at the venues. And that is something that goes against the grain of someone who wants to open doors, whether interpersonal or musical. In times such as these: "No-one knows how long this can continue." The lyrics of Sünder (Sinner) are a wake-up call.
Music remains the finest consolation, and the evening turns to quieter pastures. Future Memories muses elegiacally about time. It passes by, even when in moments like these it seems to stand still. The crickets join in with the Juchitzer. The old Original Alpinkatzen hits Weit, weit weg and Heast as net invite a final indulgence under the stars. In short: a treat of a concert, but with a message.
Hubert von Goisern sets off musical fireworks
The artist and his four musicians as well as singer and percussionist Maria Moling offered an almost unbelievable spectrum of music – and far more than a mixture of rock and folk.
Hubert von Goisern and his band set off great musical fireworks for the start of the Klostersommer 2023. At the end of the sold-out concert, the spectators rose to give a standing ovation. At the exit stood the beaming promoter, Jürgen Ott.
The accordion as leitmotif
Von Goisern and his musicians, as well as singer and percussionist Maria Moling offered an almost unbelievable musical spectrum, particularly in the first part of the concert, when focus lay on the most recent album Zeiten & Zeichen. Far more was offered than just a mixture of rock and folk music. Von Goisern's accordion functioned as a leitmotif throughout the concert (he's also master of the guitar and various brass instruments). One minute you think you're at a hearty evening in an alpine hut, then Dunkelblau brings the blues. Rap and electronically distorted voices were as much a part of it as a 200-year-old yodel from a woodcutter from Goisern. That is the hometown in the Salzkammergut from where the musician and singer took his name. Brauner Reiter sounds like Rammstein, Eiweiß on the other hand carries you off to the Caribbean with calypso sounds.
One of the highlights: a version of the classic gospel Sinnerman. Von Goisern raved about Nina Simone's version, which he deems to be unparalleled. He almost didn't dare attempt it. But when he began to play the song with his band during the recordings for Zeiten & Zeichen, he felt: "You can do anything with this band."
Indeed, the conspicuously young troupe that accompanies the 70-year-old are masters of their profession and von Goisern repeatedly allows them to showcase their musical ability in solos. Added to that was excellent sound. Compliments to the sound engineer, the sound came across crystal clear. Even beyond the solos, each individual instrument could be heard.
Song after song without a break
Many a singer will tend to tell long drawn-out stories, meaning the music comes up short. That's not the case with von Goisern, who played song after song without a break for about two-and-a-half hours. The only exception was in memory of Fritz Löhner-Beda. He wrote librettos for operettas by Franz Lehár such as Land des Lächelns and Giuditta. The Jew Löhner-Beda, born in Bohemia as Bedrich Löwy, was murdered in the Auschwitz concentration camp in 1942. There is no evidence to support Lehár's claim that he defended the librettist in the face of the powerful Nazi figures with whom he had good connections. He later claimed not to have known about Löhner-Beda's fate. During the song in his memory, the voice of Wagner tenor Andreas Schager, currently on stage as Parsifal at the Bayreuth Festspiele, is incorporated with the Lehár song Freunde, das Leben ist lebenswert. A really special, thought-provoking moment in the concert.
More alpine rock in the second part
In the second part von Goisern reflected on his 30 years of musical creativity with alpine rock in the foreground. It ended with the encores Heast as net and Weit, weit weg. Right at the end, von Goisern sat alone on stage with the guitar and added one more treat. In classic singer-songwriter style, he sang a song about a love that shines Dunkelrot (Dark Red) even beyond death.
Hubert von Goisern comes to the Old Salt Works
He has taken a number of breaks in his artistic life, a fair few sidesteps, but his fans have remained loyal to him for more than 30 years. Hubert von Goisern wants to take another break now, but before that he has released a live CD and a compilation of the hits from the last 15 years. He'll be coming to the region on 29 July, when he plays at the Alte Saline in Bad Reichenhall. Norbert Haimerl has followed Hubert von Goisern since his first TV appearance in Germany, on Regional Fernsehen Oberbayern in 1989.
