Wir singen gern! Here in Waldsee, we sing many types of songs, including Kinderlieder (children’s songs), Volkslieder (folk songs), Popmusik (pop songs from Germany, Austria and Switzerland), and of course … Trinklieder (drinking songs!).

These songs are a big part of German culture, particularly in Bayern (Bavaria) at Oktoberfest, which takes place in September and early October. Nearly six million people attend the original 16-day event held in Munich every year. We often have our own Oktoberfest here at Waldsee — you can see a video of a recent Oktoberfest-themed Bankett (end-of-session banquet) here! At Waldsee we celebrate with Wurzelbier (rootbeer) and Apfelschorle (a popular German beverage made from apple juice and sparkling water).

We sing a number of Oktoberfest songs in Waldsee, and one of our favorites is “Wenn’s bayerisch’ Bier regnet” (“When it rains Bavarian beer”). This song has a seemingly endless number of verses (there are sixteen in the Waldsee Liederbuch), and we’ve learned four of them so far this session ….

A sample verse:

“Mein Brüder in der Schweiz
Ja er hat es gar fein
Er beisst in den Käse
Die Löcher hinein!”

(“My brother in Switzerland
Has it really good
He bites the holes
Into the cheese!”)

On Sunday before going home for the night, we sang a rousing rendition of “Wenn’s bayerisch’ Bier regnet.” You can watch a short video of this song below!

Ein Prosit der Gemütlichkeit!