Songs of the 1848 Revolution
Lead Research Organisation:
Queen's University Belfast
Department Name: Sch of Modern Languages
Abstract
This project will build upon both the previous work of each applicant and the existing collaboration between them. It focuses on the historical reception of the songs of the 1848 revolution, with the aim of producing 'the first critical anthology' of thirty songs in total (nine of which will have been completed by Robb by the start of the funding period). The 'annotated edition' will consist of a general 'academic commentary' on the songs, an edition of 'all versions' of each one, a survey of sources, a 'literature register', and 'detailed scholarly commentary' on each song. According to the applicants, 'the novelty of the research lies in the integration of historical critical edition and historical commentary, which will demonstrate origins, usages and significance of the respective songs'. Attention will be paid to the transformation of both poetic and musical texts, as well as the constantly changing historical and social contexts'. This research will be presented as part of the 'Historisch-kritisches Liederlexikon' and therefore will be accessible on the internet. comments on proposal In many ways, this is an exemplary proposal. It clearly identifies the research area, the 'state of the art' in the field of research as well as the applicants' preliminary/on-going work therein, objectives and work schedule, research processes and areas of focus, and the uses to which the requested funding would be put. The funds themselves are relatively modest in terms of the intended deliverables. Bearing all of these points in mind, and in relation to the relevant costs, I am tempted to assign to the proposal an overall rating of A, I.e. 'Excellent', using the grading scale indicated below. I must however register my considerable disappointment that the applicants do not develop the strong intellectual case for this research that they could and indeed should have. Although all of the material within the application has been clearly set out, little or no sense of urgency emerges from it, partly because no research problems/issues/questions of consequence have been articulated. A case of sorts is of course made under section 3.1, but this has more to do with the tangible outputs that are to be produced than the Intellectual issues surrounding the material in question. It is not enough simply to say that 'in view of the various appropriations which political song have been (and are) to a high degree subject to ... a research project such as this one aims to throw light on such instrumentalisation and has for this reason a particular social relevance'. A good deal more should have been written about this, developing a proper argument in respect of the putative 'social relevance' of this research as well as for its intellectual significance in general. Although I do not doubt that the research would be valuable and worth undertaking, this must be inferred from what has been written. Thus, my overall rating of this proposal In terms of its Importance and urgency is A-as defined below.
I have been asked to comment on the anticipated added value of the cooperation, and it is my belief that the collaborative basis of the research is commendable and likely to be of benefit both to the applicants and to the research in question. The intended outputs - which could not readily be produced outside the collaborative framework described here - will serve as evidence of the benefits thereof.
Below I have provided a grade for each of the relevant criteria. Grading scale A = Excellent B = Good C = Fair D = Poor E = Unacceptable 1. Quality of the Project / Qualification of the Applicant Soundness of the preliminary work: A Quality of publications: A
I have been asked to comment on the anticipated added value of the cooperation, and it is my belief that the collaborative basis of the research is commendable and likely to be of benefit both to the applicants and to the research in question. The intended outputs - which could not readily be produced outside the collaborative framework described here - will serve as evidence of the benefits thereof.
Below I have provided a grade for each of the relevant criteria. Grading scale A = Excellent B = Good C = Fair D = Poor E = Unacceptable 1. Quality of the Project / Qualification of the Applicant Soundness of the preliminary work: A Quality of publications: A
People |
ORCID iD |
| David Robb (Principal Investigator) |
Publications
David Robb
(2011)
'A Man's a Man for a' that' and 'Trotz Alledem': Robert Burns, Ferdinand Freiligrath, and Their Reception in the German Folksong Movement
in The Modern Language Review
John, E.
(2011)
Waelzen moecht' ich mich vor Trauer
Robb D
(2010)
Playing with the 'Erbe': Songs of the 1848 Revolution in the GDR
in German Life and Letters
Robb, D
(2016)
The Mobilising of the German 1848 Song Tradition in the Context of International Twentieth Century Folk Revivals
in Popular Music
Robb, D.
(2009)
Leute tretet rings heran
Robb, D.
(2011)
Was zieht dort zur Brigittenau
Robb, D.
(2012)
In Kuemernis und Dunkelheit (Schwarz-Rot-Gold)
Robb, D.
(2012)
Mein Deutschland, strecke die Glieder
| Description | Songs of the 1848 Revolution Critical Editions and Commentaries on the Liederlexikon (www.liederlexikon) of the Deutsches Volksliedarchiv 1. Main Research Outcomes Since 2009 David Robb and Eckhard John have been preparing commentaries and critical editions of 23 representative songs of the 1848 Revolution. A book is now being prepared for publication with the Camden House publishers The research is original in its setting of song commentaries alongside critical scholarly editions. At its basis lies an interdisciplinary approach combining literary, musical, political and historical analyses. It forms a section of the online 'Historisch-kritisches Liederlexikon' of the Deutsches Volksliedarchiv in Freiburg and can be located on the website:http://www.dva.uni-freiburg.de/forschung/ahrc-dfg_projekt. The book will take twenty representative songs of that time which have particularly shaped the cultural memory associated with this period of history. In the period of the Vormärz (from 1815 up to the revolution of March 1848) the political song increasingly became a means of self-expression in public life as broader sections of German society strove for political emancipation. A wide spectrum of themes emerged in political song ranging from calls for democratic and national self-determination through parodies of political convention and opportunism to critiques of censorship, injustice and hunger. Many of these songs were anonymous; others were written by established poets such as Georg Herwegh, Ferdinand Freiligrath and Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben. This work bridges the gap to the last most significant research on the subject by Steinitz in 1962 by incorporating the reception of the 1848 songs since their revival in the new folk scene from the mid-1960s onwards. It also includes critical editions of songs of poets excluded by Steinitz as he did not consider them 'songs of the people'. Internet research in databases of libraries and archives has furthermore located new sources of song reception in broadsheets, handwritten manuscripts, press advertisements, memoires, police reports and general literature from the 1848 period. These have revealed new information about the milieus in which these songs circulated and how they reflected or helped shape particular responses to the revolution. Research has also discovered new melodies used for these songs. A recurring musical feature is the practice of 'contrefacture': the use of popular melodies in an intertextual way to maximise thematic associations. Above all the new research points to the role of ideology in the transmission of song tradition. The dissemination of the 1848 song 'tradition' was marked by frequent rupture: it was banned in the first decades after the revolution itself and during the Third Reich. It was also revived, however, at various periods, for example, by the German workers movement of the late nineteenth century, folklore academics of the early twentieth century, political choirs of the Weimar Republic and latterly the folk and political song movements of the GDR and the Federal Republic. In both post-war states the 1848 songs were claimed as 'democratic' cultural inheritance - in a conscious distancing from Nazi heritage - and used as political education. In many instances one comes across what Raymond Williams refers to as 'the selective tradition' (1977). One finds how political agendas of the Cold War created myths in the conscious shaping of cultural memory, for example, in the editing out of certain verses of the song 'Trotz alledem' in early GDR versions. In West Germany, too, ideological and musical considerations determined which of the revived 1848 songs enjoyed popularity. This often bore little ressemblance to their actual dissemination during the revolution itself. By the same token, many of the militaristic battle songs dedicated to iconic figures such as Friedrich Hecker and Robert Blum met with little resonance in the folk revival. In this respect the research shows that songs are not static; they evolve musically and textually and can have different socio-political significances for different generations. The book, already accepted by Camden House, will be around 300 pages. An introductory chapter and a concluding discursive chapter will frame the twenty song chapters. Each of the song chapters will consist of a commentary section plus editions (text and music) of the two most representative versions of each song. The book structure will be as follows: Introductory chapter: 'The Emergence of Political Song in 1848-49: Function and Impact'. 1.Füersten zum Land hinaus (anon., 1832), 2. In dem Kerker (anon., 1837), 3. Sah ein Fürst ein Büchlein stehn (Dreves, 1843), 4. Wohlgeboren (Herwegh), 5. Das Blutgericht (anon., 1844), 6. Bürgermeister Tschech (anon., 1844), 7. Freifrau von Dröste Vischering (Löwenstein, 1844), 8. Hungerlied (Weerth), 9. Frisch auf Mein Volk (Herwegh, 1845), 10. Schwarz-Rot-Gold (Freiligrath, 1848), 11. Der große Hecker (Nadler, 1848), 12. Hecker Hoch (anon., 1848), 13. Zu Frankfurt an dem Main (Herwegh), 14. Trotz alledem (Freiligrath). 15. Was zieht dort zur Brigittenau (anon., 1848), 16. Ausgelitten, ausgerungen (Hoffmann von Fallersleben, 1848), 17. Der gute Untertan (Glaßbrenner, 1848), 18. Mein Deutschland, strecke die Glieder (Herwegh, 1848), 19. Reveille (Freiligrath, 1849), 20. Badisches Wiegenlied (Pfau, 1849). Concluding chapter: 'The Mobilising of the German 1848 Protest Song Tradition in the Context of International Twentieth Century Folk Revivals.' This final chapter sets the subject of the book in a wider international framework. While the revival of a "democratic" folk song tradition in Germany after the Second World War is mostly viewed as a counter-reaction of to the misuse of folk song by the Nazis, this chapter will point out that such a shift to a more 'democratic' interpretation and promotion of folk tradition was at that time not distinct to Germany. Research conducted on the folk song revivals of the United States and Great Britain, allows us to gain fresh perspectives on the processes involved in the mobilising of the democratic song tradition in Germany: firstly the ideological basis on which folk traditions are constructed; secondly how social movements function in providing channels of transmission for tradition, and thirdly how in this process a collective cultural memory can be created whereby lost songs - such as those of the 1848 Revolution - can be awakened from extinction. The chapter will culminate with concluding thoughts on the relationships between political song, folk tradition and social movements in the present day. |
| Exploitation Route | The research is already been used in non-academic contexts: the general public frequently use the Liederlexikon website where the song commentaries of Robb and John can be found. This is proven by the number of website hits which each song receives. Emails sent to the Deutsches Volksliedarchiv by the general public also give evidence of this. For example, 31/10/2012 from Bernd Hans Göhrig of Ecumenical Network Initiative Churches From Below who wanted to create a link in their magazine to Robb and John's song commentary 'Zu Frankfurt an dem Main', and 23/10/2012 from Christian Souchon who wanted to link Robb and John's essay on 'A Man's a Man for a' that' with his website on Jacobite Songs) (http://chrsouchon.free.fr/jacobe.htm) The presentation by Robb and John at the Rudolstadt Folk Festival in 2010 on the transnational song 'A Man's a Man' (see disseminations) also was evidence of the use of their research in a non-academic context. This was further confirmed when they presented the results of this AHRC and DFG funded research at a workshop for musicians and teachers on 6 July 2013 at the Rudolstadt Folk Festival in co-ordination with the Regional Centre for Political Education of Thuringia (see disseminations). Feedback forms indicated that teachers intended to make use of Robb and John's work on the democratic song tradition for preparing school classes on music, history and politics. David Robb and Eckhard John are now working on creating a European-wide research network on 'Songs of the 1848 Revolution'. This will comprise of researchers from European countries where revolutions took place in 1848 such as France, Italy, Austria, Slovenia, Hungary and Romania. I will represent the UK and Ireland and John will represent Germany. The aim is to look at the role of 1848 revolutionary song in shaping modern European understandings of democracy. A successful application for an AHRC network grant would enable workshops to take place in order to pave the way for an application for European funding. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Education,Security and Diplomacy |
| URL | http://www.liederlexikon.de/ueber_liederlexikon_de/projekte/ahrc-dfg_projekt |
| Description | Robb's research has been given a prestigious public platform at the Rudolstadt Folk Festival, the largest festival of its kind in Germany. On 3 July 2010 he presented his work on Burns' 'For a' that' within a colloquium led by cabaret artist Dieter Beckert " for the 200th anniversary of the birth of the song's translator Ferdinand Freiligrath. The Folker journalist Reinhard Ständer wrote how the show cast a new light on the relationship between German and Scottish folk music. Beckert wrote how the revelation of this connection inspired his new cabaret production featuring the character Findlater based on a Scottish earl, resident in Saxony in the Romantic period. It also resulted in an annual Burns Supper in the Albrechtsburg Castle. Robb's workshop, 'Historical Political Songs in the 21st Century', took place at the Rudolstadt Festival on 7 July 2013. He and John presented their research in front of a 50-strong audience comprising of teachers (music, history, politics or German), social workers, musicians, translators and journalists. This was followed by a discussion entitled 'New Perspectives for School and Political Education' featuring guests from the worlds of folk music (Jürgen Wolff), political song (Heinz Ratz), the media (Michael Kleff) and the Centre for Political Education of Thuringia (Peter Reif-Spirek). 22 participants filled in questionnaires and discussed how the research could be used in their professions. Summary of questionnaire answers: Haupert and Kröger and Melchior indicated they already used the 'Liederlexikon' in school teaching. Several other teachers said they would use it. It was praised as a useful resource for: • the origins of songs and their process of transformation, for example, in the adaptations and parodies (Brock). Meijer (translator, singer) stated that the research illustrated how 'the path a song takes is just as important as the song itself'. Bülzingslöwen commended the updating of tradition through the discovery of new composers. • political education classes dealing with Neo-Nazism and nationalism (Melchior), the definition of freedom (Bärtel), or in talking through historical contexts (Dörnenburg). • the repertoires of singers and choirs (von Bültzingslöwen, Dörnenburg, Nagel, Vierheilig) • journalistic and media work: Lehn for his book on the GDR folk scene; Nagel for his articles for the German Wikipedia; Engelle in an article he is currently writing for Folker. • for new insights into the wider European context of 'A Man's A Man'/ 'Trotz alledem' (Siska, Nagel, Kröger and Neumann) • for enabling an up-dated contextualisation of the subject (Ackermann) The interest in Robb and John's work is also documented by the positive feedback in emails from people who use the 1848 website in their work, for example, Christian Souchon who used an excerpt from their 'Trotz alldem' chapter on his homepage 'Jakobite Songs' and Bernd Hans Göhrig who requested permission to reprint the 'Zu Frankfurt an dem Main' commentaries in his magazine Querblick. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2010 |
| Sector | Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Education,Leisure Activities, including Sports, Recreation and Tourism,Government, Democracy and Justice,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections |
| Impact Types | Cultural,Societal |
| Description | DAAD Research Stays for Senior Academics |
| Amount | € 4,000 (EUR) |
| Organisation | German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United States |
| Start | 06/2017 |
| End | 08/2017 |
| Title | Populaere und historische Lieder. Historisch--kritisches Liederlexikon (Popular and Historical Songs. Historical-Critical Song Lexikon) |
| Description | The research on songs of the 1848 Revolution forms part of the website of the Liederlexikon of the Deutsches Volksliedarchiv in Freiburg (now the Centre for Popular Culture and Music of the University of Freiburg). This is a large database containing detailed information about the history of reception of folk songs. It contains critical commentaries on each song plus editions (textual and musical) of the most important versions of each song which have been handed down in history. The uniqueness of this model lies in the combination of critical commentary plus editions of each song (see website below). For our project, over the three years, we researched and compiled detailed information about 23 songs of the German 1848 Revolution. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | At the symposium at the Rudolstadt Folk Festival in July 2013 Eckhard John and I presented the results of our AHRC and DFG-funded project before an audience of school teachers and social workers who used political song in their educational work with children. Feedback forms were filled out afterwards. Several teachers (Haupert, Kröger and Melchior) indicated they had already used Robb and John's 'Liederlexikon' as source material in school teaching. It was praised as being a useful resource for locating the origins of songs and viewing their process of transformation, for example, in the adaptations and parodies (Brock) and generally for enabling an up-dated contextualisation of the subject (Ackermann). The workshop was also commended for its new insights into the wider European context of the Burns song 'A Man's A Man' (Siska, Nagel and Neumann). This research was used by the School of Creative Arts at QUB as an impact case study for the 2013 REF. |
| URL | http://www.liederlexikon.de/ueber_liederlexikon_de/projekte/ahrc-dfg_projekt |
| Description | AHRC joint grant with the German Research Foundation (DFG) (2009-20012): 'History of Reception of Songs of the German 1848 Revolution' published in the Historisch-Kritisches Liederlexikon (www.liederlexikon.de). |
| Organisation | Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg |
| Country | Germany |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | I co-researched and co-wrote the song monographs and critical editions of selected songs of the 1848 Revolution with Eckhard John of the Deutsches Volksliedarchiv. These monographs traced the history of reception of these songs from 1848 up to the present. My contribution was the interdisciplinary analysis from musical, textual and political perspective. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Eckhard John's contribution was primarily from an historical and ethnomusicological perspective. |
| Impact | The following song monographs/ critical editions have been published and are available to see at above website: All the following outputs are multi-disciplinary, encompassing musical, literary, historical and political perspectives: Ausgelitten, ausgerungen Der Hecker ist gekommen in den Schwarzwald hinein Freifrau von Droste-Vischering Frisch auf, mein Volk, mit Trommelschlag (O wag' es doch nur einen Tag!) Frisch auf zur Weise von Marseille (Reveille) Fürsten zum Land hinaus (Das deutsche Treibjagen) Ich bin ein guter Untertan In Kümmernis und Dunkelheit (Schwarz-Rot-Gold) Leute tretet rings heran (Tschech-Lied) Leute höret die Geschichte (Robert Blum) Mein Deutschland, strecke die Glieder Nah bei Wien, im deutschen Lande O du verratnes Deutschland (Das Lied vom treuen Robert) Sah ein Fürst ein Büchlein stehn Schlaf mein Kind schlaf leis (Badisches Wiegenlied) Seht, da steht der große Hecker (Das Guckkasten-Lied vom großen Hecker) So hab ich es nach langen Jahren (Wohlgeboren) Trotz alledem Verehrter Herr und König (Hungerlied) Wälzen möcht' ich mich vor Trauer (Ein schönes neues Lied von dem weltberühmten Struwwel-Putsch) War wohl je ein Mensch so frech (Lied vom Bürgermeister Tschech) Was zieht dort zur Brigittenau Zu Frankfurt an dem Main The folllowing articles have also been published on this website: David Robb, Eckhard John: 'For a' that' und 'Trotz alledem'. Robert Burns, Ferdinand Freiligrath und ihre Rezeption in der deutschen Folkbewegung (2009). In: Populäre und traditionelle Lieder. Historisch-kritisches Liederlexikon. URL: (46 pages) David Robb, Eckhard John: Verehrter Herr und König. Vertonungen des Hungerlieds von Georg Weerth in der deutschen Folkbewegung (2010). In: Populäre und traditionelle Lieder. Historisch-kritisches Liederlexikon. URL: David Robb: 'Schlaf mein Kind, schlaf leis'. Zur musikalischen Rezeption des 'Badischen Wiegenlieds' in der deutschen Folkbewegung (2013). In: Populäre und tradtionelle Lieder. Historisch-kritisches Liederlexikon. URL: |
| Start Year | 2008 |
| Description | 'Trotz alledem'. Zum 200. Geburtstag des (politischen) Dichters und Übersetzers Hermann Ferdinand Freiligrath |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | This was a presentation and cabaret performance on Robert Burns, Ferdinand Freiligrath and the song 'Trotz alledem' ('A Man's a Man for a' that') at the Festival Symposium of the Rudolstadt Folk Festival in Thuringia, Germany. This was performed in the style of a talk show interview with Dieter Beckert as host, David Robb as Robert Burns, and Eckhard John as Ferdinand Freiligrath. David Robb also performed music, singing 'A Man's a Man for a' that'. There was a large audience of around 100 folk festival attenders in the Rudolstadt town library. The following text appeared in the Festival brochure: Celebrating the 200th anniversary of the (political) poet and translator Hermann Ferdinand Freiligrath (Detmold 17 June 1810 - Cannstadt 19 March 1876) we address ourselves to his most famous translation: Trotz alledem which is based on a text by Scottish national poet Robert Burns (For a' that, an' a' that). In a concertante collage appear on the scene: David Robb (Belfast) as Robert Burns, Eckhard John (Freiburg) as Ferdinand Freiligrath, and Dieter Beckert (Dresden) as master of ceremony, helped out by musicians and singers from various cities. This presentation/ performance resulted in the invitation to myself and Eckhard John to present the final results of our AHRC and DFG funded research to an audience of teachers and practitioners in 2013 at the Rudolstadt Folk Festival. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2010 |
| Description | A Man's A Man for a that. Journey of a Revolutionary Song from Scotland to Germany |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Type Of Presentation | keynote/invited speaker |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Invited plenary paper and performance for the Symposium for Retirement of Bill Webster in the German Department of the University of Edinburgh, 5 June 2009. David Robb gave a talk and performed different versions of the songs 'A Man's a Man for a' that' and 'Trotz alledem', accompanying himself on the bouzouki. The talk was based on the article on 'Trotz alledem' published in Modern Language Review 1/106, 2011. pp.17-46. I was invited to perform the German translation of "A Man's a Man" at the symposium dinner in the evening. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2009 |
| Description | A Man's A Man for a that. Journey of a Revolutionary Song from Scotland to Germany |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Type Of Presentation | paper presentation |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
| Results and Impact | This was a paper given at the 41st International Ballad Conference at the University of Faro, Portugal, 22 June 2011. The talk was based on the article on 'Trotz alledem' published in Modern Language Review 1/106, 2011. pp.17-46. It was followed by questions and discussion. My paper and performance of the song in question resulted in considerable networking with academics working in the field of song reception and the influence of song on society. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2011 |
| Description | Construction of Oppositional Social Identity in the Song Culture of the Vorm?rz and 1848 Revolution in Germany |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Type Of Presentation | keynote/invited speaker |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
| Results and Impact | Invited paper given at the conference 'Identities, Intertexuality and Performance in Song Culture' at the Goethe Institut, Amsterdam on 18 October 2012. There was lively discussion afterwards which resulted in an invitation to publish my paper in the conference volume. It also provoked discussion on how the website of my AHRC/DFG funded research was used by the public and how my experiences compared with the Dutch Folksong Website of the Utrecht University who sponsored the conference. My activity led to an invitation to collaborate on a future European research network project on folksong. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012 |
| Description | Historisch-politische Lieder im 21. Jahrhundert |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Robb and John presented the results of their AHRC- and DFG-funded research at the Rudolstadt Festival on 7 July 2013 in front of an audience comprising of teachers, social workers, translators and journalists. This was followed by a panel discussion entitled 'New Perspectives for School and Political Education' featuring invited guests from folk music (Jürgen Wolff), political song (Heinz Ratz), the media (Michael Kleff) and the Director of the Regional Centre for Political Education of Thuringia, Peter Reif-Spirek. 24 participants filled in questionnaires indicating the extent to which the research was considered useful in their professions. Summary: • Several found Robb and John's website useful for teaching (music, history, politics or German). It was a good source of information on the origins of songs and their process of transformation, for example, in the adaptations and parodies (Brock). It was found useful for political education classes dealing with Neo-Nazism and nationalism (Melchior), t |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| URL | http://www.liederlexikon.de/ueber_liederlexikon_de/projekte/ahrc-dfg_projekt |
| Description | Paper given at the annual conference of the European Ballad Commission |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
| Results and Impact | This was a paper entitled 'Robert Burns "A Man's a Man" and Bertolt Brecht's "Ballad of a Dead Soldier": Contrasting Images of Mankind in the Aftermath of the Somme'. It was given at the International Ballad Conference held at the World Academy of Music and Dance at the University of Limerick on 1 July 2016. The paper relates to my last AHRC and DFG-funded research in that it further explores the history of Freiligrath's 1848 revolutionary version of Burns' 'A Man's a Man'. My attendance at this conference was particularly productive as I met Music Ethnologist Katlin Juhasz from Budapest, who will be a key network partner for the AHRC network award I am currently applying for on the theme of 'Songs of the European Age of Revolution 1789-1848'. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
| Description | Research Paper at the World Academy of Music and Dance, University of Limerick |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
| Results and Impact | This was a research seminar I gave on 15 February 2017 at the World Academy of Music and Dance at the University of Limerick. My paper was entitled "A Common Heritage in the Nineteenth Century Songs of Ireland and Germany. In this paper I linked the findings of my AHRC and DFG-funded research on the songs of the German 1848 Revolution to Irish political songs of the mid-nineteenth century. A main reason for giving this paper in Limerick is that two academics from the World Academy, Sandra Joyce and Roisin NiGalloglaidh, are very interested in participating in my proposed AHRC network on "Songs of the European Age of Revolution 1789-1848" for which I have recently submitted an application. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| Description | Research presentation at the Department of Music, University of Newcastle |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
| Results and Impact | This was a research seminar at which I gave a paper 'The Mobilising of the 1848 German Song Tradition in the Context of International Twentieth Century Folk Revivals'. In this paper I interpreted findings of my AHRC and DFG-funded research on the German folk revival in the light of recent US and UK-led research into the role of folk song in social movements. This has led to an article accepted for the journal Popular Music to be published in 2016. I also made excellent contacts at this event such as Simon McKerrell whom I met again at the Protest Song conference in Cork in May 2015 and discussed possible future collaborations. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
| Description | The History of Reception of Songs of the 1848 Revolution: Myths, Dissemination and the Internet |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Type Of Presentation | paper presentation |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
| Results and Impact | 10 academics attended my research seminar in which I presented findings of the AHRC/DFG research project to my new colleagues in Music in the School of Creative Arts at Queen's Universtiy. It inspired much discussion afterwards. It led to my work being chosen to represent the School as an Impact Case Study in the forthcoming REF. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012 |
| Description | The Reception of the Songs of the 1848 Revolution in the GDR |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Type Of Presentation | keynote/invited speaker |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
| Results and Impact | After- dinner plenary talk and performance at the Conference of University Teachers of German (AGS), University of Ulster, held in Nick's Warehouse, Belfast on 8 April 2009. David Robb gave a lecture and performed the following songs accompanying himself on the bouzouki: 'Buerger-Lied', 'Badisches Wiegenlied', 'Trotz alledem', 'A Man's a Man for a' that', 'Auswander-Lied', 'Das Blutgericht'. Professor Des Bell heard me playing the song "A Man's a Man for a' that" and invited me to perform it in the Spanish Civil War prison camp scene in his forthcoming film "The Enigma of Frank Ryan" (2012) |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2009 |