Universitet och kulturarv

exemplet partiotisk sång

Authors

• Hanna Enefalk

Abstract

University and cultural heritage: The case of the patriotic songs

In the beginning of the nineteenth century a new phenomenon appeared in Europe: the patriotic male choir. In the Nordic countries it had a musical – and political – impact we can hardly fathom today, and it was an impact that emanated from the universities. In this article, Norwegian and Swedish speaking patriotic students’ choirs are examined. Initially, the impulses, the founding, and the leading men of the movement are mapped. It is described, furthermore, how the patriotic students’ singing turned into a distinctive musical practice, encompassing Scandinavian students’ meetings, concert tours (sångarfärder), and, in Sweden, festivities in honour of the monarchy. Attention is given, too, to the changing of the students’ singing over time. The initial singing in male, fourpart choirs gradually became a semi-professional activity, while the average student turned to the less demanding unison song. Emphasis is put upon the political significance of the patriotic songs. They reflect a number of issues, among them the rising of the middle classes and the emergence of a separate Finnish- Swedish patriotism. In short, the article describes how the universities created what would become a part of the cultural heritage of the nation, and examines the ideological values that were connected to this heritage.
The article is an excerpt from Hanna Enefalk’s forthcoming dissertation with the preliminary title Singing Nationalism. A question of gender ("Att sjunga nationalism. En fråga om genus").