Big in Germany

by Michael & Christian Moll

Michael & Christian Moll on why Irish music is so popular in their native country.

"You know when I think back 16 years ago, I was amazed at the excitement and enthusiasm and just the amount of interest there was in Irish music in Germany. And now, 16 years later, I am even more amazed: we have done 17 concerts and except for one they have been absolutely packed. Why there is such a fantastic interest in Irish music here in Germany - I haven't got an answer to it. But it's really fantastic." Thus concluded Liam O'Flynn during the 1994 Irish Folk Festival tour of Germany in a WDR radio interview, comparing that tour with the '78 version when Liam was on this prestigious tour for the first time.

There is often a really good communication between Irish performers and German audiences. And for several Irish musicians, Germany is one of the most popular countries to tour in. Take for example accordionist Aidan Coffey: he is always happy when he's able to tour in Germany because people here listen very well and are enthusiastic for the music, he says. Together with Scandinavia it's the greatest place for him to tour. Or the late, in Germany beloved Micho Russell - he loved to tour Germany because of the nice women; he wished to have married one, but unfortunately it never came to that ....

And Germany not only love to listen to Irish musicians, many also love to play Irish music themselves. There are a lot of Irish bands around, and some of them are very good, even getting Irish radio comments like: "Isn't it amazing - they are all from Germany Don't they sound like an Irish band?"

Another reason for Irish folk being more popular than 'Deutschfolk' is that on the one side German traditional songs have been much misused during the Third Reich so you can't sing them today, and on the other side there is a very commercial, musically very poor, but very popular music style called 'Volksmusic' which has nothing to do with folk. This creates problems for folk musicians playing German folk. To avoid them, many Germans decide to play Irish music.

Some of them are very successful: Thomas Loefke, harpist from Berlin, for example, has won first prize for Celtic harp at the O'Carolan Harp Festival, and now the new album from his band Norland Wind - a German Irish band centred on Thomas's harp, with Noel and Padraig Duggan of Clannad - has been published on the international Celtic Heartbeat label.

June 1996