Center for Folk and Traditional Music Research
The Centre for Folk and Popular Music Research (ZFVF) at Stella Vorarlberg Private University of Music is dedicated to the scientific study of folk music in the Lake Constance region and Alemannic folk music in general. A particular focus is placed on the scientific analysis of the Haid folk collection archived in the university library, which is considered one of the most important collections in the Alemannic-speaking region.
The findings are not only incorporated into academic discussions, but are also actively applied in music education contexts. At the same time, new research approaches are emerging that shed light on the tension between folk music and migration in the Lake Constance region.
The ZFVF sees itself as a central point of contact for all questions related to folk music in this region. Anyone interested is welcome to contact the head of the center, Mag. art. Evelyn Fink-Mennel, MAS, at any time to receive support or further information.
Contact person
Ethnomusicology & Head of the Center for Folk and Popular Music Research
Mag.a Evelyn Fink-Mennel, MAS
The Haid Folk Collection
The Haid Folk Collection is a collection of primary and secondary sources on the folk movement of the 1970s and 1980s in the Alemannic-speaking regions of Austria, Germany, Switzerland and France.
The married couple Univ.-Prof. Dr. Gerlinde Haid (1943–2012, folk music researcher) and Prof. Dr. Hans Haid (1938–2019, folklorist and writer) began collecting the sources privately in the 1970s. Over a period of more than forty years, the collection grew through »participatory observation« from a musicological and sociolinguistic perspective. In 2012, the couple donated the collection to Evelyn Fink-Mennel with the request that it be made accessible to the public. It is now part of the university library as the »Haid Folk Collection«.
The published and unpublished materials include books, journals, sound carriers (long-playing records), song booklets/broadsheets, newspaper articles, manuscripts, and various correspondence. The sound-carrier collection, extending beyond the German-speaking region, also includes LPs by Italian and French singer-songwriters, chansonniers, and folk groups.
In addition to the relevant ‘folk collection’, a considerable portion of the private library of folk music researcher Gerlinde Haid, containing academic literature and practical guides on folk music from the Alps (not only German-speaking), has also been added to the library of the Stella Vorarlberg Private University of Music.
This unique folk collection stands out thanks to its international focus and its collection of materials on the Austrian folk movement, which is unparalleled in its scope. Unlike the German folk movement (since the 1960s), which has been extensively and multifacetedly evaluated in publications, the Austrian movement (since the 1970s) has only been marginally researched. The ‘Haid Folk Collection’ provides the basis for a source-based, scientific presentation.
