Origins: Ich hatt' einen Kameraden

Subject: RE: Song History: Ich hatt' einen Kameraden
From: GUEST,mg
Date: 21 Feb 05 - 05:27 PM

I would love to..it is highly unlikely but I can always dream....mg

Subject: RE: Song History: Ich hatt' einen Kameraden
From: Susanne (skw)
Date: 21 Feb 05 - 05:09 PM

Mary, come to France in May and I'll do it for you! (Maybe Wolfgang and Andreas will help ...)

Subject: RE: Song History: Ich hatt' einen Kameraden
From: mg
Date: 20 Feb 05 - 09:30 PM

It's a beautiful song. I don't believe I have heard it sung. I will try to learn it. It truly shows the sadness of war and the importance of remembering comrades. mg

Subject: RE: Song History: Ich hatt' einen Kameraden
From: Susanne (skw)
Date: 20 Feb 05 - 05:53 PM

Welcome to the Mudcat, George! You're referring to the Nazi (mis?)use of the song. (They also used Beethoven to announce their daily 'battle reports' on the radio.) Outside this fairly special era I think its use was confined to burials or Remembrance days, as said above.

Subject: RE: Song History: Ich hatt' einen Kameraden
From:
Date: 20 Feb 05 - 10:25 AM

Dear Wes:

If you care to find out more particulars about the song "Ich hatt' einen Kameraden", please contact me.
The piece was not only played at military funerals, but every Sunday in church, preceeding the announcements of the town's residents killed in action.
It was also played every Saturday at 17:00 O'Clock on National Radio
just before all the names of the German Soldiers killed during the week were announced.
It was played every Sunday on radio, after the mid-day news, before reading the names of the people killed (the ones known by then) during the bombing raids, city by city.
I lived in Germany until age 22 and was exposed to the the horrors and fears, incl. the nightly bombings in our area, of World War II.

George Wiessner.

Subject: RE: Song History: Ich hatt' einen Kameraden
From: Wolfgang
Date: 16 May 04 - 04:35 PM

That's how I know it though perhaps the word 'offiziell' may not be correct except for subgroups. It would be played in a military burial (very slow by a single trumpet (as it say above), also quite often for other groups with uniforms.

If the person who has died did wear a uniform (police, fireman, military, Burschenschaft,...), more likely than not, this tune will be heard. If the person did not wear a uniform, the tune is not likely to be heard at the burial. At the burial of a female, I have never heard this tune yet though it would not be impossible.

Wolfgang

Subject: RE: Song History: Ich hatt' einen Kameraden
From: DonMeixner
Date: 16 May 04 - 01:46 PM

Oddly we used to sing this in elementary school during chorus. We learned a number of songs in other languages. This was the German choice. (I think this may be where I learned German was a language melodic only to other German's)

To hear it sung, watch the movie "The Enemy Below" The German sailors sing it while Kurt Jurgens conducts a burial at sea.

Don

Subject: RE: Song History: Ich hatt' einen Kameraden
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 16 May 04 - 01:40 PM

Links to the song in 'ingeb' not working directly. Click on 'Deutsche Volkslieder' and scroll down in letter 'I.'

Subject: RE: Song History: Ich hatt' einen Kameraden
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 16 May 04 - 01:35 PM

The link to 'ingeb' was posted in the main thread, 26268: Kamerad
Here is the link again, as Thierry has posted above: Ich Hatt' einen Kameraden

The poem is printed under its original title (pointed out by Wolfgang) of "Der gute Kamerad" at Univ. Stuttgart, Hilaritas, website: guterkamerad
The words are identical to those given in 'ingeb' and, I presume, are those of Uhland, 1807. The Hilaritas website says "'Der gute Kamerad' ist das offizielle Trauerlied der Bundesrepublik Deutschland. Es wird meist im Rahmen von militãrischen oder zivilen Gedenkveranstaltungen von einem einzelnen Trompeter gespielt und dabei nicht gesungen.
Wir singen dieses Lied fast ausschluesslich im Rahmen der Trauerkneipe, im Gedenken an unsere in den Kriegen gefallenen Bundes brüder.

Perhaps Wolfgang would comment on these practices.

The poem was written in Napoleonic times; its popularity continues to the present. It is known in translation in several European languages as well as English. It's significance is understood by anyone who has served and lost a comrade.

Subject: RE: Song History: Ich hatt' einen Kameraden
From:
Date: 16 May 04 - 11:55 AM

http://ingeb.org/Lieder/IchHattE.html

try this link
you gonna find the text and music
this song is part of the napoleonian culture which was still strong in germany around the end of 19th century
it's like Taps in us culture
all the best TL
France

Subject: RE: Song History. Ich Hatten Einen Kameraden
From: Wolfgang
Date: 03 May 04 - 02:08 PM

Uhland's original title actually was 'Der gute Kamerad' (which is not given correctly in the DT).

As nearly always in German songs, the song is only recollected by the first line 'Ich hatt' einen Kameraden'. The original title by now is fairly unknown in Germany. In song collections it is rarely mentioned.

Wolfgang

Subject: RE: Song History. Ich Hatten Einen Kameraden
From: alanabit
Date: 03 May 04 - 02:11 AM

Then the apostrophe would stand for the missing "e". That's not uncommon in speech or dialect. It's the "Ich Hatten", with the "n" which sounds strange to me.

Subject: RE: Song History. Ich Hatten Einen Kameraden
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 02 May 04 - 08:11 PM

The title in the DT is incorrect. 'Mein guter Kamerad' is a line in the third verse. The author is not credited, only Silcher who adapted the poem.
I have put a quite good (and almost literal except for the first line) translation at the main thread 26268: Ich hatt'

Subject: RE: Song History. Ich Hatten Einen Kameraden
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 02 May 04 - 07:49 PM

Jim McLean is correct; the original title by Ludwig Uhland was "Ich hatt' einen Kameraden (1809).
After all, he was a poet and poets are allowed to do things like that.

Subject: RE: Song History. Ich Hatten Einen Kameraden
From: Jim McLean
Date: 02 May 04 - 06:04 PM

I think it should be Ich hatt' einen.....

Subject: RE: Song History. Ich Hatten Einen Kameraden
From: alanabit
Date: 02 May 04 - 01:53 PM

Shouldn't that title be, "Ich Hatte Einen Kameraden"? It may be in a dialect which I don't know, but here we would usually say, "ich hatte..."

Subject: RE: Song History. Ich Hatten Einen Kameraden
From: mack/misophist
Date: 01 May 04 - 06:12 PM

Thanks for the link, Wolfgang. it was more than informative. I first saw the song in Texas, circa 1955, in a collection of German socialist marching songs. Not knowing any German or much history, yet, my only thought was that it was easily the most powerful song in the book. 'Freut Eauch des Lebens' didn't hold a candle to it.

Subject: RE: Song History. Ich Hatten Einen Kameraden
From: Jim McLean
Date: 01 May 04 - 01:23 PM

Every Pfingsten (Whitsun) I go to Rothenburg ob der Tauber for the MeisterTrunk Festival. This song and many others are sung around the pubs and in the streets, especially on Sunday and Monday. The feeling of friendship is almost tangible and I wouldn't miss it for the world.

Subject: RE: Song History. Ich Hatten Einen Kameraden
From: GUEST
Date: 01 May 04 - 01:02 PM

Subject: RE: BS: Song History. Ich Hatten Einen Kameraden
From: Rebel135
Date: 22 May 01 - 12:23 AM

Wolfgan and Irish Sargent, thanks for the imput.

Wolfgang the previous thread explains a lot about the song.

William Shirer in his book talks about how some men did not go gently into the obliviion of history and tried hard to resist Hitler take over of power.

One of them to show how deeply he felt of one mans courageous stand,sang a passage from the song from the Song.

Its odd about heritage, I much about my fathers family but my mothers family is really something of a mystery to me.

The song, when I have heard it is used in moments of deep emotion.

Listening to song in German and trying to understand what makes Germany tick is quite challenging.

Thanks

Wes Prichard

Subject: RE: BS: Song History. Ich Hatten Einen Kameraden
From: Irish sergeant
Date: 21 May 01 - 07:14 PM

Wes: Wish I could help. I know the song title literally means "I have A Comrade" Very likely it is a military song. Let me know how the research goes and by the way, I felt at home when I was in Germany also. Kindest reguards, Neil

Subject: RE: BS: Song History. Ich Hatten Einen Kameraden
From: Wolfgang
Date: 21 May 01 - 04:51 AM

Wes,

click here for an old thread that shows you some mixed feelings of Germans about this song. I have linked in the old thread to an award winning article about the history of this song. The article is in German, but maybe with the help of a translation function that is available on the web, you might get the idea.

Wolfgang

Subject: Song History. Ich Hatten Einen Kameraden
From: Rebel135
Date: 21 May 01 - 03:46 AM

My familys been in the US on my fathers side back into the 1600..

On my mothers side, my Granfather was German born and my mother age 90 mother's was American born of Germans American parents. An immigrant somewhere 1880/1890

I went to German a few years ago and have become acquainted with the Germans.It feels comfortable. Steven Ambrose recently mentioned in a book on WWII the Germans and US citizens feel at home together, if only because both nations feel that soft toilet paper is necesary for some degree of civilization. (Joke)

To get to my point, before I bore everyone, Germany has the highest number of citizens immigrate to the US. When I went to Germany, thought I coulnt speak the language very well. I felt at home.

I have come across numberous mentions of the special place Ich Hatte Einen Kameraden has for the Germans.

Its played at most military funerals and seems to have the same revernce that taps does.

Can anybody enlighten me with more information.

I have not been able to find it on the net.

Since I have seen so many mentions of it, I just wondered how it came to the place of reverence it holds in German culure.

Wes Prichard.... From The Shadow Of Mt. Rainier 14.410 to point sucess.