Change demanded

The state anthem is once again being targeted

"My homeland people, my homeland..." - the anthem was already being discussed in 2023.

(Bild: Huber Patrick)

The "Interessengemeinschaft Autorinnen Autoren" (interest group of authors) is making a new attempt to change the Burgenland state anthem. The answer is clear.

A few days before the national holiday, the "IG Autorinnen Autoren" is once again pushing for a reorientation or further development of the Burgenland national anthem. "We do not believe that it makes sense in the long term to invoke the immutability of an anthem that came into being under political circumstances that neither exist today nor should be restored," it says in an open letter to Governor Hans Peter Doskozil.

Criticism already in the previous year
The IG had already criticized the previous year that the composer Peter Zauner was a member of the NSDAP and that the anthem was therefore "historically tainted".

Anthem as a "relic of the corporative state"
Now they go into more detail. On the one hand, the anthem is still a "relic of the corporative state", on the other hand, there is no reference to the different ethnic groups in the country in the song. Also, not a single line is written in one of Burgenland's minority languages.

New interpretation
The IG cites the version reinterpreted by composer Christian Kolonovits for "100 Years of Burgenland" as a positive example of the direction in which the anthem could be developed.

Clear response from the province
The governor's office says: "The Burgenland state anthem will certainly not be changed under Governor Doskozil. It is an important part of the state's identity and will remain so." The state had already responded to an initiative by the "IG Autorinnen und Autoren" last year and called in the renowned historian Dr. Herbert Brettl. He classified the text as "time-bound" and, in comparison to other comparable anthems, as unencumbered.

Open to creative debate
However, the country is always open to academic as well as artistic and creative approaches to this topic. This is demonstrated by Christian Kolonovits' involvement in the celebrations for "100 years of Burgenland".