Germany claims some of the most renowned composers, singers, producers and performers of the world. Germany is the largest music market in Europe, and third largest in the world.
Alpine folk music is the common umbrella designation of a number of related styles of traditional folk music from the Alpine regions of Slovenia, Northern Croatia, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and South Tyrol (Italy).
Schlager music is a style of European popular music that is generally a catchy instrumental accompaniment to vocal pieces of pop music with simple, happy-go-lucky, and often sentimental lyrics. It is prevalent in Central, Northern and Southeast Europe.
Switzerland has long had a distinct cultural identity, despite its diversity of German, French, Italian, Romansh and other ethnicities. Religious and folk music dominated the country until the 17th century, with growth in production of other kinds of music occurring slowly.
Volkstümliche Musik is a modern popular derivation of the traditional Volksmusik genre of German-speaking regions. Though it is often marketed as Volksmusik, it differs from traditional folk music in that it is commercially performed by celebrity singers and concentrates on newly created sentimental and cheerful feel-good compositions. Volkstümliche Musik is sometimes instrumental, but usually presented by one or especially two singers and is most popular amongst an adult audience in (Germany), Austria, Switzerland, and also in South Tyrol (Italy), Alsace-Moselle (France), Netherlands, Flanders (Belgium), Slovenia, Silesia (Poland) and northern Croatia.
Heinz Georg Kramm, known professionally as Heino, is a German singer of Schlager and traditional Volksmusik. Having sold a total of over 50 million records, he is one of the most successful German musicians of all time.
Stefanie Anke Hertel is a German singer of popular music, popular folk music, schlager music, television presenter, and former yodeler.
The Grand Prix der Volksmusik was an annual regional song contest for folk music, held from 1986 until 2010. The countries taking part were Germany, Austria, Switzerland and, from 2000, South Tyrol.
The Kastelruther Spatzen are a musical group from South Tyrol, northern Italy, who have won many honours and awards for their schlager in folk music style.
Helene Fischer is a German schlager singer, dancer, entertainer, television presenter, and actress. Since her debut in 2005, she has won numerous awards, including 17 Echo awards, four "Die Krone der Volksmusik" awards and three Bambi awards. She has sold at least 15 million records. In June 2014, her multi-platinum 2013 album Farbenspiel became the most downloaded album ever by a German artist and is currently the sixth bestselling album of all time in Germany. Her signature song "Atemlos durch die Nacht" was the bestselling song in Germany in 2014. She has had the best-selling album of the year in Germany five times, in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, and 2018. She ranked No. 8 on Forbes' list of "The World's Highest-Paid Women In Music 2018", earning $US32 million. Fischer has been referred to as the "Queen of Schlager".
Philip Vilas Bohlman is an American ethnomusicologist.
Hubert von Goisern is an Austrian singer-songwriter and world musician. With his mix of rock music and elements of traditional Volksmusik he has become a prominent exponent of the so-called New Volksmusik and Alpine Rock in Austria, Switzerland and Germany. His stage name von Goisern refers to his hometown. Hubert von Goisern has won numerous record certifications and several national and international awards.
Sigrid & Marina are a vocal duo from Austria, who perform in a range of popular music (schlager), traditional Volksmusik and Volkstümliche Musik. The sisters, Sigrid and Marina Hutterer, come from Gmunden in Salzkammergut, Upper Austria.
Beatrice Egli is a Swiss pop and Schlager singer. She is the winner of season 10 of the German music competition Deutschland sucht den Superstar. Egli became the second contestant from Switzerland to win the title after another Swiss person, Luca Hänni, won the previous season of the series. She has sold over 1,000,000 records in Germany, Switzerland and Austria.
Stadlshow is a live broadcast entertainment show of German pop music, Schlager and Volkstümliche Musik. The program tours Austria, Germany, Switzerland and South Tyrol being produced by ORF, and broadcast via the Eurovision with the cooperation of Bayerischer Rundfunk and Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen. Formerly known as Musikantenstadl which was produced for over 30 years, the show was remodelled into what is now the Stadlshow in an attempt to attract younger viewers. The show is presented by Francine Jordi and Alexander Mazza.
Michael Bredl was a German Volksmusik musician and collector, publisher, teacher and the first Volksmusik conservator in Bavarian Swabia in the region of Allgäu.
Marilena Kirchner, also known as simply Marilena, is a German volksmusik and schlager singer.
Stefanie Jodl is a German volksmusik singer.
Voxxclub is a German Neue Volksmusik band.
Leopold Neuhauser was an Austrian musician, composer of instrumental works, and virtuoso of the guitar and mandolin. He lived in Vienna in the early 19th century, where he taught music and composed.
