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Bänkelsang
(840 words)

The term Bänkelsäng, first encountered in the 1730 work of Johann Christoph Gottsched, refers to a form of public singing performance which (as “street-ballad”) spread throughout Europe from the early 17th century onwards, flourished in the 19th century and continues to be performed in a number of European countries, such as Italy [3], to the present day. The German term derives from the small bench (Bänkel) on which the street singers stood, so as to be better seen and heard, during their appearances at annual markets and fairs, in public houses and in front…

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Tschopp, Silvia Serena, “Bänkelsang”, in: Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online, Editors of the English edition: Graeme Dunphy, Andrew Gow. Original German Edition: Enzyklopädie der Neuzeit. Im Auftrag des Kulturwissenschaftlichen Instituts (Essen) und in Verbindung mit den Fachherausgebern herausgegeben von Friedrich Jaeger. Copyright © J.B. Metzlersche Verlagsbuchhandlung und Carl Ernst Poeschel Verlag GmbH 2005–2012. Consulted online on 19 March 2024 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2352-0272_emho_SIM_017314>
First published online: 2015
First print edition: 20160321



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