Schlagersemiotik

Beiträge der Passauer Mediensemiotik

Abstract

The issue is dedicated to Schlager as a subgenre of (primarily German) folk music from various disciplinary and theoretical perspectives, starting from the assumption that Schlager cannot be explained without reference to filmic sign systems as well as social, cultural and national meaning-making processes. The semiotic perspective enables an in-depth analysis of the embedding and functions of Schlager in German-speaking culture, especially in film and entertainment, with a particular focus on the first post-war decades. The contributions shed light on, among other topics, the role of Schlager in aligning individual desires with collective needs in the GDR (former East Germany), the depiction of an idealised world in West German post-war Schlager films, the flexible adaptation of Schlager to cultural change and the surprising functions of Schlager in auteur films of the 1960s.