Len Fehskens ([log in to unmask]) wrote:

>Keith Dixon writes:
>
>>My elderly reference books tell me the national anthem is, or at least
>>was, *Land der Berge, Land am Stromme* (Land of Mountains, Land on the
>>River).  Could the words have been set to something by Mozart?
>
>I think an earlier Austrian National Hymn (Gott Erhalte...) was set to
>music by Haydn, from one of his string quartets.  I think the announcer
>misremembered the composer.

The Emperor Franz Josef's hymn was written IIRC expressedly for the purpose
by Haydn, who later used it as the theme for the theme&variation second
movement of his quartet Op.76 No.3 (3?) known, for obvious reasons, as the
Emperor Quartet.

The melody was later hijacked by Germany and the words "Deutschland,
Deutschland, u"ber alles" set to it.

Although why, as one English comedian (anyone remember who?) pointed out,
they would want an anthem to clothing ("German, German overalls"), is
something of a mystery.

Deryk Barker
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