“Dutch Hop”Music of the Volga

Germans

• Origination of the Dutch Hop Style of Music

• Evolution of the Instrumentation

• Evolution of the Dance

• Name – “Why Dutch Hop?”

• Evolution of the Music and Sound Itself

“A Dutch Hop is a polka . . . . but a polka isn’t necessarily a Dutch Hop.”

-Steve Deines

What Exactly is Dutch Hop?

Put simply, “Dutch Hop is the music unique to the Volga Germans. No other ethnic group in

the world has the beat, instrumentation, dance steps, or heritage in their ethnic music

more so than the music played by those descendants of Germans from Russia. It is a musical genre consisting of polkas, waltzes,

schottisches, drinking songs (Dusches), and in later years two-steps with a solid beat and a

unique instrument grouping.”

From where did the Dutch Hop songs come?

• A song in German is a “Lied” (LEED)-Kirche Lieder-Trinken Lieder-Story Telling Songs (Funny, Happy, Sad)

-And yes, even raunchy

• Evenings were occupied by singing songs

Dusch (prounounced “Dooosh”)

• A German drinking song, usually funny, and sometimes a bit ribald in nature.

• Everyone knew the words – and some made them up as they would sing along

Dusches Turn into Fiddle Songs

• Usually a single fiddle accompaniedthe group as they sang

Polkas• Hinter’em Ova Sitz Der! (Behind the Stove)• Bei der Windmill, geht der Weg Naus (By the Windmill,

the driveway goes out)• Hingle und die Giegel (Chickens & Roosters)

Songs with a 2/4 beat, played moderately and never too fast –a polka beat

Waltzes

• Ich Habt Dich Geliebet, Was Hab Ich Davon? (I have loved you, but what do I have to show for it?) GAWWW NIX!

• Nicht Gesehn (Hätte Ich Dich Nicht Gesehen, Wie Glücklich könnte ich sein?) (If I hadn’t seen you, how unlucky could I have been?)

• Skipper (or Shgipper) – Very fast 3/4 beatLove songs, ballads, songs of lost love or jilted

lovers – a slower, 3/4 timing – except the “Shgipper”

Song 1: Polka Kings, 1989Song 2: Nile Valley Boys, 1940’s

Songs Traveled to Russia

• Entertainment on long Russian nights

• Way to gather and socialize

• No TV, Internet or Cable

• Visiting, playing cards, Duroc, Solla, Pinochle

Instrumentation

The Dulcimer

• History is unclear-Greek?-African?-Asian? -Taken to Europeby Marco Polo?

• Bavarian (Tyrolean) Music

•Cymball (Tsimbal)

•Zymball

•Hackbrett (our dialect) {literally, “hacking,” or “chopping” a board}

•In Colorado, “The Board”

•Precursor to the Piano

• Henry Heinze – Windsor, Colorado

• Built 151 Dulcimers

• Alex Weimer

Arlo Deines, Fort Collins, plays one of Henry’s dulcimers

In Russia – Instrumentation Takes Shape

In our Volga German villages, instrumentation became:

• Two Fiddles (one lead melody, second plays harmony and fill)

• The Hackbrett (Rhythm)

• Cello (not bass, but played a bass line and a rhythm)

(This was basically the only instrumentation in Russia – in rare instances, and upright bass, or “Kuh” was used”

In Russia

• There were no Dutch Hop bands – as an organized group

• Hardly one group (the same group) played twice

• Usually consisted of family members, close friends

• Played for weddings at the request of the Groom’s family (where the wedding receptions were held)

Kratzke Musicians – 1875

Brass “Bands”• At Weddings . . . Brass Band Escorts – but no brass in the Dutch Hop – not

just yet

• To the Church (Nei Ge-Bloasa)

• To the Groom’s Parents House – the Reception (Raus Ge-Bloasa)

Rohr Brothers from Mariental, Russia

Weingardt Brothers: Frank, Paul, Alex, Sully, and Joe – Sterling, Colorado, 1930’s

The Dance – The Hop, or “Hoopser”• Clues abound to the “Steps”

• Polish “Jump” – the Pogo Stick Dance

• The German “Rutscher” (root-chur)-Old German way to Polka-”1-2-3,1-2-3”-Round-n-Round, drag feet-Similar to ballroom dancing, Foxtrot

The Hop!

• Unique to Germans from Russia

• Only danced in Kansas, Colorado, Nebraska, Wyoming

• Side-by-side, then face-to-face

• Man (leader) starts on left foot, woman on right foot

• Foot goes down on the count of “1,” and is usually held for the successive counts of “2 & 3.” Meanwhile, the upper body or the shoulders contain the “hop”

• Shoulders of the dancers go up and down, giving the impression of a “hopping” motion

• Easier on the knees and back; weight is displaced more so on the foot as opposed to the entire leg

Why Did They Hop?• Dances were at weddings – usually no public dances

• No dance halls or ballrooms in the villages – wedding receptions were traditionally held at the home of the groom’s parents

• Room for only 3 – 4 couples to dance; the Haus Vater (usually the Father of the Bride) determined who – and in what order – couples were allowed to dance at one time

• A group of dancing couples would enter and dance. They were “budgeted” 3 or 4 numbers to dance. The Hackbrett player would move the tuning hammer down a notch after each song to keep track of the number of songs (unless the musicians were bribed!)

• After the 4th song, the next group would come in

• Rooms were very small

• Not a lot of space to dance the “Rutscher”

• The Hop evolved as a necessity for dancing real estate

• Each couple could dance, have a good time, and no mind of space was required

Our Dutch Hop Beat

• Stomping – at the end of a measure, Dutch Hop music has a unique, “Boom! Boom!,” which were emphasized by the dancers stomping their feet. When they got to a corner, the men would twirl the ladies whilst hopping

• Showed gratitude for the band

• Would shout, “Hochzeit!,” or “High Time!,” (also means “Wedding”)

• “Hey-Ho-Hup!”

• Side-to-Side: Women wore long floor-length dresses; one hand free to hold their dresses

• Brought to Kansas with the first U.S. settlements in 1876

Lawrence Welk and the Germans from Russia Dancers

Premiere Show – “The Dodge Show” – 1955 from Chicago

Mr. and Mrs. Gerren (Gören) and the Dutch Hop

From Early 1900’s – to 1925

Munjour, Kansas Band: Felix Werth, Fidelis Sauer, Anton Sauer, Alex Befort, Peter Sauer

Templing Brothers – Late 1920’s

Song #3: Russian Fiddler Polka – Two Fiddles, Hackbrett, and the Bassgei (Cello)

Proof These Songs Came from Russia

• Song #4: Windsor Special – Bob Schmer

• Song #5: Rutz Tutz – Los Henkels – Santa Anita, Argentina

1925 – 1940Influence of the “Roaring ‘20’s”

• Two Fiddles

• Hackbrett

• Upright Piano – sometimes Upright Bass (Die Kuh)

• Accordion replaces cello for rhythm – chording only – NOT A LEAD INSTRUMENT

Templing Brothers – Late 1930’s

• Song 6: Kalya Polka

• Song 7: Hingle und die Giegel

Two Fiddles, Dulcimer, Upright Piano, Accordion for Chording

1940 – 1955 – The Name “Dutch Hop”WWII Changes Our Music – Literally – in name and style

• Hochzeit/German Dance/Hoopser or “German Hop”• Most dances were wedding dances in Russia and in the early days in the

U.S.• Public Dances started in the 1930’s – Church Picnics – Saturday Nights• Unaffected by WWI – as most were still weddings• WWII – German not used in schools, in households, and in public• German no longer “politically” correct. “Dutch Hop” used for 1st time as a

code language• English Neighbors referred to us as “Rooshans,” or “Dutch”• Or, was it a code variation on the word, “Deutsch,” or “Deitsch,” which is

the word for German?

The Term, “Dutch Hop” Survives

Dutch Hop (dut-ch’-hawp): (noun, noun, noun, noun, noun, verb, noun, adjective): 1. (noun) of or relating to a Dutch Hop; 2. (noun) a dance; a gathering of Volga Germans; 3. (noun) a public dance (i.e.: “No, that was no wedding dance, that was a Dutch Hop”); 4. (noun) a dance step performed by the Germans from Russia when dancing their version of a polka (“they did a Dutch Hop”); 5. (noun) a type of music synonymous with the Germans from Russia (“They only listen to Dutch Hop”). 6. (verb) a dance of the Germans from Russia (i.e.: “I saw them Dutch Hop!”) 7. An ethnic group of Germanic peoples who live in America by way of Germany, Russia, Germany, and finally the U.S. (“Those ‘Dutch Hoppers’ can really dance!”)

1940 – 1955 (con’t)

• Accordion replaces Fiddles as lead instrument

• Fiddle remains, but only one (not two); used second, harmonize, or take lead in the second part of a song

• Saxophone, trumpets, replace clarinet (which was gradually phased-out)

• Big Bands such as Tommy Dorsey, Lester Laninand Glenn Miller affect Dutch Hop Instrumentation

Song 8: Joe Rupp Orchestra –Antonino, Kansas – 1946 – “Antonino

Polka”Trumpet, Clarinet, Saxaphone, Upright Bass, Upright

Piano, Accordion for Chording

Song 9: Weingardt Brothers Band –Denver – 1951 - “Anna Barbara Polka”

Accordion, Dulcimer, Fiddle, Upright Piano

Song 10: Nile Valley Boys – Scottsbluff, Nebraska - 1947 - “Gallop Polka”

Accordion, Dulcimer, Fiddle, Upright Piano, Upright Bass, Baritone

Family Dynasties

• Weingardt (Colorado)

• Deines (Kansas, Colorado, Montana)

• Templing (Kansas)

• Basgall (Kansas)

• Kufeldt (Nebraska

• Wiedeman (Nebraska)

• Schneider (Nebraska)

• Bauer (Kansas & Nebraska)

The Deines Family

Georg Jakob Deines (Yawdy Op) married Katharina Margaretha Müller in Kratzke

Russia in 1848 (both born in 1827)

• Had 10 children; 7 came to the U.S.

• Had at least 80 grandchildren

• Georg Jakob Deines died in Russia in 1882 and was buried in Kratzke

Adam A. Deines – “Yawdy Adam”•Came to the U.S. in 1900•Had 8 Children•Many of his grandchildren, great grandchildren, great-great grandchildren, and even great-great-great grandchildren became notable musicians

Left: Pete Deines, master of the Hackbrett. Accordionist is Wilhelm “Chicago Bill” Deines.

Solomon “Solly” Deines – Master of the Accordion, Dutch Hop Accordionist, with his children, Harriet Deines Jennings, Terrance & Ted Deines, 1955 – Grandson of Adam A. Deines

Great Great Grandsons of Adam A., and Great-Great-Great Grandsons of Georg Jakob Deines (6 Generations)

Georg Heinrich Deines• First Deines sibling of Georg Jakob to arrive in U.S.

• Had 6 children from his first wife, Katherina Elizabeth Deines

• She died in childbirth December 27, 1898 in Milberger, Kansas; baby son died the next day

• One of the 4 living children, Solomon, 3 years old, died less than one month later

• Remarried a widow with 5 children in Milberger, and moved to Fort Collins, Colorado; they had 11 more children

Right: Sig Deines plays the organ in Windsor, Colorado

Kristoff Deines

Bill Deines: Leader of the Deines Trio with wife, Lizzie, and son, Arlo. Son Vernon also an accomplished musician. Grandfather to Steve and Rod Deines. Great-Grandfather to Steve Deines, Jr.

Sam Deines: Virtuoso on the fiddle, banjo, and accordion. Paul Weingardt is once quoted as saying that Sam could out-play him on the accordion. Sam wrote the very famous Dutch-Hop, “The Overall Polka,” which is one of the hardest and complex accordion-fingering Dutch Hops played (when played correctly).

Palmer Deines: One of the top fiddle players in Dutch Hop. Recorded with Paul Weingardt as the Weingardt Brothers, and with Paul’s Band, the Alpine Dutch Hops. Took over for brother Sam’s band, “The Jolly Polka Band.”

Left: Bill on the accordion and Lizzie on the Piano.

Right: Arlo, Bill, and Lizzie . . . “The Deines Trio”

Song 11: Deines Trio plays the Deines Special

Sam Deines on accordion; Frankie Frank on the dulcimer; Johnny Urban on the piano. (Early 1950’s)

Johnny Urban, Piano; Frankie Frank, Dulcimer; Palmer Deines, Fiddle, Sam Deines, Accordion

Rod & Steve (to the left)

Steve Deines above, and Steve Jr to the right.

Right: Vernon and Rod Deines

Below: Rod with the Al Holman Band - 1988

Deineses????

1955 to 1970 – the “Golden Age of Dutch Hop!”

• Amplification• Upright Bass replaces Cello’s bass line - Upright

Piano becomes very prevalent• Rhythm Guitar makes appearance• Hackbrett takes more lead on certain songs• Entrance of Hackbrett Lieder, or Dulcimer Songs• Saxophone more prevalent – 5 piece band

arrangement• Trombone makes it’s entrance in the position of

the old Cello’s place for chording and rhythm

Song 12: Polkateers – Scottsbluff, Nebraska – Farmer’s Polka - 1956

Accordion, Dulcimer, Trombone, Trumpet, Upright Bass

Song 13: Carl Zeller, Jr – Greeley, Colorado – Cheer Up Sweetheart - 1966

Accordion, Dulcimer, Guitar, Upright Piano

Song 14: Jolly Polka Band “The Jolly Hops” –Denver, Colorado – Wiedeman’s Special- 1965

Accordion, Dulcimer, Trombone, Upright Piano

The Masters

• Paul Weingardt

Song 15:Paul Weingardt – Dark Moon -

1962

The Masters

• Adolph Lesser

Song 16:Helena Polka -

1963Accordion, Dulcimer, Piano,

Upright Bass, Trombone, Saxophone

1950’s

Alex Bauer, Scottsbluff, Nebraska

1950’s

Wiedeman Band

Scottsbluff, Nebraska

Polkateers, Scottsbluff, Nebraska

The Kufeldt Family

1960’s

Dutchmasters, Russell, Kansas

1970’s

The Electronic Age of Dutch Hop Begins

• Electric Piano replaces the upright piano

• Upright Bass, Fiddle, Saxaphone – all but disappear

• Emergence of the 4-piece bands we know still today: Accordion, Hackbrett, Bass Piano, Trombone

Albert Holman and the Polkatoons – Loveland, Colorado

Song #17: Fielstievel(Felt Boots) by Al Holman

Song #18: I’ll build You a Castle by the Alpiners

1980’s – “Electronic Dutch Hop”

Polka Kings –Russell, Kansas

Song #19: Dulcimer Polka – Chris VonLintel Wedding - 1984

Albert Holman –Loveland, CO

Song #20: Sunset

Polka - 1980

Song #21 – “Frankie and Connie’s Polka” by John Fritzler and the Polka Band

1990’s to Today – The Decline of a Genre . . . . And the Preservation of a

Heritage

• Active Bands Today-The River Boys (Bob Schmer, Steve Deines) {Neb}-The John Fritzler Band {Colorado}-The Polka Nuts (Mike Gaschler) {Colorado}-The Polka Kings (Garry Batt) {Kansas}-The Dutch Hop Music Makers (Eckharts) {Colo}

• Dutch Hop Bands-Over 40 Active Bands at one time in the

Mid 1960’s-Five to Six Bands today

• Dances: Every Band playing every week, 2 – 3 times per week

-Today, each band may play once a month

• Dancers: 300 – 500 people at one dance-Today, 40 – 60 people is a good “crowd”

Some Dutch Hop Bands have left Dutch Hop for variety, modern, or East-Coast (Cleveland)

style of music

Our Dutch Hop Lives On

Song 22: “Pole Cat Polka” – Terry Batt’s Rocky Mountain Dutch Hop

Boys, September 25, 2011