Deutschlandlied - the German National Anthem by Franz Joseph Haydn

Deutschlandlied translates as "The Song of Germany" and it is based on a melody composed by the Austrian composer Franz Joseph Haydn. Haydn originally wrote the melody for a song to celebrate the birthday of the Austrian Emperor in 1797 and he reused the theme in a number of works, most notably in his "Emperor" String Quartet (Op.76 No.3 in C major). The melody was then used for the Austian National Anthem for a number of years and was later adopted by Germany in 1922. In an historical twist, Austria later chose a new melody for the Austrian National Anthem (this time by Mozart another famous Austrian composer) in order to distance itself from something which became associated with Germany during the 2nd World War. Nevertheless Haydn's melody is used as a hymn with alternative English lyrics and included in several hymnals.

This arrangement is for piano and can be played as a piano solo, or used to accompany singers and other instruments. The Anthems of other selected countries can be found in our article National Anthems and Patriotic Songs.