Duncan McCain

Professor Tyler

MUS 214

14 December 2021

Austrian Music and Culture

The country of Austria has a very complex history intertwined with different cultures,

kingdoms, and time periods. Because of this, I set out with the intention of first answering the

question, “what is Austrian culture?” Through my research, I found that Austrian culture is not

necessarily one concrete thing, but rather the accumulation of all of the different cultures that

have had an impact on Austria over the years. Generally speaking Austria itself is a fairly new

country, only gaining independence in 1955. Before this, the territory that is now known as

Austria went through many different changes in the sense of who controlled the territory. All of

these changes of power had a large impact on the culture of modern day Austria, and in turn had

an impact on the music of Austria as well.

In order to better understand the culture of Austria and how their music reflects that

culture, we must first understand the history of the country itself. Although the country of

Austria itself is relatively new, the roots of the country go back to the Celtic tribes who inhabited

the area in approximately 400 BC. Since then, there have been multiple different cultures who

have come in and taken control of the region ranging from the Romans, Turkish empires, and

Germanic kingdoms (History). This constant change of power would go on until the mid-19th

century when the Austro-Hungarian Empire came to prominence. This empire was comprised of

Austria and Hungary as well as the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Bosnia, Croatia and
parts of present Poland, Romania, Italy, Ukraine, Moldova, Serbia and Montenegro. Obviously,

because of this there were multiple different cultures that made an impact on the region that is

now Austria, and still continue to have an impact today. The fall of this empire took place when

Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated, and the First World War began. Since that

time and up until Austria gained its independence in 1955, Austria went through occupations by

many different countries, most notably the Germans in World War II. Because of all of this,

there is a strong sense of multiculturalism in Austria, and it has been reflected in their music.

To begin with, I decided to research the traditional music of Austria. This research

yielded many different results because of the many different cultures that exist within Austria,

with each culture having its own form of traditional music. One of the most prominent forms of

traditional music in Austria, however, is their folk music. Since folk music has been around for

longer than Austria has been a country, and has not always been written but rather passed down

through oral tradition, it is hard to gauge the exact influences of where the genre came from. One

of the most accepted ideas, however, is that Austrian folk music is a culmination of the

traditional music from German speaking countries, and countries throughout the Austro-

Hungarian Empire (Suppan, 118-19). One of the most important cultural practices in Austria is

the practice of comradery (Austrian Culture). This core value of comradery ties in perfectly with

Austrian folk music because the music is not just about the music itself, but rather it is about the

environment it is being played in, the people who are there, and the dancing that accompanies it.

One of the most important parts of Austrian folk music is the dances that accompany the music

itself, which are performed by others in the community who are not playing the music. This

strengthens the comradery between people in the community and works perfectly with the

cultural values in Austria.

 To go along with the traditional folk music of Austria, there is also a strong musical

scene of the traditional music of minority groups. Of these minority groups, two prominent

groups with strong ties to their music in Austria are the Burgenland Croats, and the Bosnian

refugee community. The music of the Burgenland Croats has actually been very popular within

the folk community in Austria, as it has won multiple folklore awards. The main differences

between traditional “Austrian” folk music and that of the Burgenland Croats has to do with the

traditional instruments, dances, and costumes associated with the music (Hemetek, 143). For

example, national costume, a traditional instrument called the tamburica, wedding dances, and

the Croatian language are all parts of what makes Burgenland Croat folk music unique. The other

prominent form of traditional minority music that has gained popularity in Austria is the

Sevdalinke, or Bosnian traditional love music. The rise in popularity of this genre in particular

has come about more recently, with tens of thousands of Bosnian refugees coming to Austria

since 1992. The Bosnian refugees saw this music as a way to bridge the gap between Bosnia and

Austria, and was offered to Austrian public as a way to show that they were not poor refugees

who had found shelter, but rather a people with certain cultural expressions that they brought

with them (Hemetek, 146). By having these two types of music be popular in Austrian society,

we can see how big of a role multi-culturalism plays in their own culture.

Although multiculturalism is a significant part of Austrian society, in recent years there

has been an attempt to create a new brand of uniquely Austrian identity. This push towards

gaining a more concrete national identity is something that has been taking place since Austria

gained its independence in 1955. One of the ways that Austria has been able to do that is through

Austropop, or Australian pop music. Austropop began as a form of resistance and adaptation to

the spread of rock music in the 1960s (Larkey, 154). The essential goal of Austropop was to take
the music that was becoming popular in the world, and morph it into something that was more in

line with Austrian cultural identity. When speaking about Austropop, it is important to mention

that the genre is not just one form of music, it has ranged from rock, to punk, pop, and more. It is

not the style of the music that matters necessarily, but rather the overall message of issues and

traditions that are uniquely Austrian that are being shown through the music. Throughout the

history of Austria, the country has been seen as a combination of many different countries and

their values. Austropop’s aim has been to break away from that perspective and focus on the

more modern issues and values that are held by Austrians as time goes on.

Austria, as we see, has a very interesting and unique culture that is reflected in its music.

Although Austria itself has had a short history as a country, we are able to see the interesting

impact that multiculturalism has had on its people and its music throughout history. Austria is

unique in that it has been able to use its historical power conflicts and struggles to make many

different forms of music that represent its culture. This is still continuing to this day through

Austropop, which has used music genres that have emerged in other parts of the world and

morphed them into representing Austrian tradition, issues, and values. The historical mixing of

cultures and values is the main thing that I think makes Austrian culture unique, and that is

clearly reflected in their music since all of their music throughout history has tied in that mixture

of cultures and values.

 Works Cited

"History." austria.info, www.austria.info/en/service-and-facts/about-austria/history.

Suppan, Wolfgang, and Eva Borneman. “Research on Folk Music in Austria since

1800.” Yearbook of the International Folk Music Council, vol. 8, International Council for

Traditional Music, 1976, pp. 117–29, https://doi.org/10.2307/767387.

"Austrian Culture." Cultural Atlas, culturalatlas.sbs.com.au/austrian-culture/austrian-culture-

core-concepts.

Hemetek, Ursula. “Music of Minorities Between Exclusion and Ethnoboom. Intercultural

Encounter in Austria.” The World of Music, vol. 43, no. 2/3, [Florian Noetzel GmbH Verlag,

VWB - Verlag für Wissenschaft und Bildung, Schott Music GmbH & Co. KG, Bärenreiter],

2001, pp. 139–52, http://www.jstor.org/stable/41699371.

Larkey, Edward. “Austropop: Popular Music and National Identity in Austria.” Popular Music,

vol. 11, no. 2, Cambridge University Press, 1992, pp. 151–85,

http://www.jstor.org/stable/852938.