Entartete Musik

"Jewry and German music, those are opposites, which by their nature stand in harshest contradictions to each other." - Joseph Goebbels (Art, Culture, and Media Under the Third Reich, Richard A. Etli)

Music, Propaganda, and the Third Reich: 

Music has always been an important aspect of German culture. Music under the Third Reich was no exception. If anything, music took on a greater significance during the regime as the Nazis sought to create a "purified" national cultural identity, purged of “degenerate” Jewish and foreign influences. In 1933 the Nazis established a Reich Chamber of Music, which encouraged government sanctioned music, forcibly removed Jewish musicians from any official posts, and banned the playing of Jewish compositions. The Nazi government also attempted to eliminate the Jazz and Swing music that had become popular in Germany in the 1920’s, believing that its foreign origins tainted German musical culture. The government even created a museum exhibition in Düsseldorf, Germany titled “Entartete Musik,” (Degenerate Music) to educate visitors about dangers of Jewish and foreign music. This exhibition showed that the music the Nazis censored was not based on type or style, but rather the racial characteristics of the people who wrote and played it. 

Music was also closely linked to the Nazi's ability to persuade and control its people. This is particularly evident in their use of music in propaganda. Rallies, marches, and parades included popular songs such as Horst Wessellied (Horst Wessel song), the Anthem of the Nazi Party. Music and singing were also crucial tools for indoctrination and community building among children's programs, like the Hitlerjugend (Hitler Youth). Aware its popularity in German culture, Hitler and the Nazis were successfully able to intertwine music with the belief system of the Third Reich, and incorporated this music into spectatular displays of Nazi power to achieve the desired effect among German audiences.  

What Music was Approved by the Nazis?

The Third Reich appropriated many composers, musicians, conductors, and types of music as examples of Aryan achievements. One of the most prominent examples is 19th century composer Richard Wagner (1818-1883), a favorite of Hitler's. Other examples include:

• Ludwig Von Beethoven (Composer/Pianist)
• Herbert von Karajan (Conductor)
• Walter Gieseking (Pianist)
• Anton Bruckner (Composer)
• Hans Hotter (Opera Singer)

Click on an image below to learn more about some of the approved composers and musicians.