Heiße Luft
Heiße Luft

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More detailsArtistic whistling is something typically Viennese that experienced a boom in the last quarter of the 19th century. Artificial pipers are people who can whistle to a complex melody in different pitches without technical aids. The Viennese Schrammel Quartet performed with natural singers, bagpipers and artificial pipers, who were so popular with the public that they were showered with tips by the audience The most famous artificial piper in Vienna was the Fiaker Johann Tranquillini (1855-1895), known as Baron Jean, whose most famous fan was Crown Prince Rudolf. His repertoire included operetta arias and concert waltzes, embellished with elaborate trills and whistling coloratura. In Germany, these interpretations of classical music, which were even performed at the court of the Austrian Emperor, were trivialized as a form of good-humoured light music. The high form of artistic piping gradually fell into oblivion. Austria’s last professional art piper was Jeanette Baroness Lips von Lipstrill (1924-2005). Nikolaus Habjan revived the tradition of art piping and is now one of the best art pipers in the world. With Viennese charm, he leads us through the evening in a highly entertaining manner and revives this virtuoso artistry in a fascinating way. …
Nikolaus Habjan is congenially accompanied by the pianist Ines Schüttengruber from Wiener Neustadt. Their program is challenging: in addition to arias from famous operas, Habjan imparts musical knowledge to the audience in a very humorous way.
The crazier the coloratura, the more passionate the phrases or the finer the pianissimo – Nikolaus Habjan has the virtuoso talent to simply whistle opera arias – and to do so excellently, highly musically and above all with a lot of fun … You won’t believe that this works – you have to experience it! Habjan also presents the concert evening with Viennese charm and in a highly entertaining manner. Article to read
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