{"id":6448,"date":"2020-01-09T10:00:32","date_gmt":"2020-01-09T10:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/?p=6448"},"modified":"2020-01-07T15:56:57","modified_gmt":"2020-01-07T15:56:57","slug":"dutch-music-songs-about-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/dutch-music-songs-about-life\/","title":{"rendered":"Dutch Music: Songs about Life"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>While watching a movie about the life of the famous Dutch singer Andr\u00e9 Hazes, I came across a term that I had not heard of before: <em>het <\/em><em>levenslied.<\/em><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_6455\" style=\"width: 244px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright post-item__attachment\"><a href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/LaTKX\" aria-label=\"AndreHazes 234x350\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6455\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-6455\"  alt=\"\" width=\"234\" height=\"350\" \/ src=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/01\/AndreHazes-234x350.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/01\/AndreHazes-234x350.jpg 234w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/01\/AndreHazes-684x1024.jpg 684w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/01\/AndreHazes-768x1151.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/01\/AndreHazes-1025x1536.jpg 1025w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/01\/AndreHazes.jpg 1367w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 234px) 100vw, 234px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-6455\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo taken by Marco Raaphorst found on Flickr.com with license CC BY 2.0<\/p><\/div>\n<h3>Meaning<\/h3>\n<p>Literally translated,\u00a0<em>levenslied<\/em> means a song about life. The tradition of\u00a0<em>levensliederen\u00a0<\/em>began in the early 1900, and stems from the French <em>chanson.\u00a0<\/em>Below is a definition of <em>levenslied<\/em> from the website <a href=\"http:\/\/www.muziekencyclopedie.nl\/action\/genre\/levenslied\">MuziekEncyclopedie.nl<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><em>Het levenslied is een lied waarin zaken uit het dagelijkse leven worden bezongen. De tekst (altijd standaard opgebouwd uit coupletten en refreinen) gaat over de schaduwzijde van het bestaan en heeft bijna altijd een moraal. Het levenslied roept een sentimenteel of melodramatisch gevoel op.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>These songs are meant to be sentimental and usually offer some sort of moral or lesson. I would say these are very similar to American country. <em>Levensliederen\u00a0<\/em>are quite popular and are often playing at the traditional\u00a0<em>bruin caf\u00e9s<\/em> or <em>kroegen<\/em>. Despite their melodramatic themes,\u00a0<em>levensliederen<\/em> bring about a happy atmosphere.<\/p>\n<h3>Singers of the\u00a0<em>levensliederen<\/em><\/h3>\n<p>Like I previously mentioned,\u00a0<em>levensliederen\u00a0<\/em>have been around for more than 100 years, and the genre has changed a lot over time. One of the earliest singers of this genre is the Flemish singer Bobbejaan Schoepen (1925-2010). Below is his song <em>Cafe Zonder Bier<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Bobbejaan Schoepen - Caf\u00e9 Zonder Bier (lyrics in description)\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/kLC06_TM1Yk?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Another early pioneer was J.H. &#8216;Koos&#8217; Speenhoff (1869-1945). He was a singer, songwriter, illustrator and painter. Below is one of his songs with lyrics. This version is not with Koos&#8217;s voice, but the newer recording makes it a lot easier to understand and follow along.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Wilfred zingt Koos Speenhoff - Het meisje dat je nooit vergeet (1907)\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/HTKVUxXG7Pc?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><em>Zangeres Zonder Naam <\/em>was another famous singer of this genre, and was nicknamed the queen of the\u00a0<em>levenslied.\u00a0<\/em>She was born in the town of Horn in Limburg and later moved to Maastricht where she sang at cafes. She recorded her first album in 1957, and in 1959 had her first <em>gouden single<\/em> or hit with the song <em>Ach Vaderlief, Toe Drink Niet Meer<\/em>. The\u00a0<em>Zangeres<\/em> was known to get political in her songs; she sung against racism, homophobia, and the Vietnam War. Below is the video of her first hit.<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/youtu.be\/jRGoNYJfrzU<\/p>\n<h3>Andr\u00e9 Hazes<\/h3>\n<p>Andr\u00e9 Hazes (1951-2004) is perhaps THE most famous singer of\u00a0<em>levenslied.\u00a0<\/em>After a few singles during his childhood, he was a singing barman at a local\u00a0<em>kroeg,\u00a0<\/em>and during this time, he wrote his first hit\u00a0<em>Eenzame kerst\u00a0<\/em>or Lonely Christmas. In 1977, he released his first record titled <em>Zo is het leven<\/em> and from there on, he became one of the most famous and known singers in the Netherlands, particularly in the\u00a0<em>levenslied<\/em> genre.<\/p>\n<p>The 2005 movie <em>Bloed, zweet en tranen\u00a0<\/em>tells the story of Hazes&#8217;s life. Spoiler alert: it was tragic. He suffered abuse growing up, developed a drinking problem early on, and he was extremely anxious and insecure. His last years are plagued with the accumulation of all these problems. You can watch <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/SLfW0Hc-5BE\">the trailer for the movie in this link<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>I have to admit that I am not a big fan of Andr\u00e9 Hazes or the\u00a0<em>levensliederen<\/em>, however, I can see the appeal. There is something enjoyable about going out with friends and finishing the night singing <em>De Hoogste Tijd <\/em>by Andr\u00e9 Hazes.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><em>De Castellijn schenkt nog wat in<\/em><br \/>\n<em>En kijkt dan op z&#8217;n klok<\/em><br \/>\n<em>Het is de hoogste tijd<\/em><br \/>\n<em>Iedereen drinkt snel z&#8217;n glas leeg<\/em><br \/>\n<em>De laatste wordt getapt<\/em><br \/>\n<em>Een jukebox liep plots leeg<\/em><br \/>\n<em>Het is de hoogste tijd wordt er geroepen uit de hoek<\/em><br \/>\n<em>De borden liggen klaar<\/em><br \/>\n<em>Ach mag ik vanavond ploffen vraagt een mannen stem<\/em><br \/>\n<em>Betaal jij morgen maar<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Het is tijd, de hoogste tijd<\/em><br \/>\n<em>U wordt bedankt voor weer een avond gezelligheid<\/em><br \/>\n<em>Dag mevrouw dag meneer<\/em><br \/>\n<em>U komt hier toch weer<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Het Laatste Rondje (Remastered)\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/RgB-a4qqaGM?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Do you like\u00a0<em>levensliederen?\u00a0<\/em>Is there a similar genre where you live?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<img width=\"234\" height=\"350\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/01\/AndreHazes-234x350.jpg\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/01\/AndreHazes-234x350.jpg 234w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/01\/AndreHazes-684x1024.jpg 684w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/01\/AndreHazes-768x1151.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/01\/AndreHazes-1025x1536.jpg 1025w, https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/01\/AndreHazes.jpg 1367w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 234px) 100vw, 234px\" \/><p>While watching a movie about the life of the famous Dutch singer Andr\u00e9 Hazes, I came across a term that I had not heard of before: het levenslied. Meaning Literally translated,\u00a0levenslied means a song about life. The tradition of\u00a0levensliederen\u00a0began in the early 1900, and stems from the French chanson.\u00a0Below is a definition of levenslied from&hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"post-item__readmore\"><a class=\"btn btn--md\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/dutch-music-songs-about-life\/\">Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":120,"featured_media":6455,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[8023,358719,516210],"class_list":["post-6448","post","type-post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-andre-hazes","tag-dutch-music","tag-levenslied"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6448","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/120"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6448"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6448\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6456,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6448\/revisions\/6456"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6455"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6448"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6448"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/dutch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6448"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}