ABSTRACT
German Männerchöre have always held a rather convivial spot in the history of America’s musical institutions. Known mainly for their sponsorship of huge choral festivals, the Männerchöre have unquestionably contributed to the growth of choral singing in the United States. They became an increasingly familiar part of the American cultural landscape after the 1840s, founded by the new waves of German immigrants fleeing political and social unrest at home. In the young cities of the Midwest (e.g., Milwaukee, St. Louis), the Männerchöre often provided the “earliest source of musical culture.” 2 Their impact was less assured in older cities, where Germans did not constitute an ethnic majority and where cultural patterns had been developing for a century or more. What did happen in those cities? Did the Männerchöre play a major role in establishing or supporting lasting musical institutions or were their activities more insular and ephemeral?
