Figure 1.--Some choirs have traveling uniforms such as lederhosen which are depicted in this 1957 film. I think this is from "Der schönste Tag meines Lebens", but am not positive.

Some interesting movies have been made in Austrian about boys choirs. The movies have been of uneven quality, but do show some details about the cotumes worn by the Vienna Choir boys. The sailor suit is thus the most common costume.

Themes

The various movies dealt with all sorts of themes, both religious and secular. The love of music is one popular contining theme. The difficulties of qualifying for a choir, the dedication of the choir master, and relationships and mischieviouness of the boys are continuing themes. The choir costumes sometimes are involved with the theme.

Costuming

The Austrian movies have depicted choirs in a wide range of costumes.

Traveling

Some choirs used to have traveling uniforms such as lederhosen or even sailor suits. Now many choirs just let the boys wear there regular clothes when traveling.

Performance

The movies have been of uneven quality, but do show some details about the cotumes worn by the Vienna Choir Boys. The sailor suit is the most common costume shown, but lederhosden are also often featured. Both long and short pants sailor suits and long and knicker lederhosen have been depicted.

Figure 2.--The sailor suit is the most popular costume for German choirs. I think this is from "Der schönste Tag meines Lebens", but am not positive.

Individual Movies

We know of several Austrian choir films. As the Vienna Choirboys are arguably the most famous boy's choir in the world, it is understandable why several films about choirs would have been mafe in or about Austria. We have some information on a few of those films.

Almost Angels

I'm not sure about the title of the film shown here. One HBC contributor reports that there is a Disney movie in which an "all-American" boy joins the Vienna Boys' Choir, albeit Austrian. The film was entitled Almost Angels (1962). It was filmed entirely on location in Austria. It is the story of two Vienna choir boys who become best friends. They try to cover up the fact that one of them is losing his golden tones. It starred two boys who were quite busy child actors. One was Vincent Winter, a British actor, and the other was Sean Scully (who was the one also in The Prince And The Pauper). The story centers around Tony Fiala, who wanted to become a Vienna Choirboy, and Peter, one of the senior Choirboy. At first Peter does not like Tony because it seems like the choirmaster takes a liking to Tony and pushes Peter to the background. However, after an incident in which Tony takes the blame for himself rather than blame Peter, the two become fast friends. One reviewer reports, "Overall, it is a wonderful movie that gets you behind the scenes of what it is like being a Vienna Choirboy. I highly recommend it."

(An) Orphan Boy of Vienna (Austria, 1936)

An Orphan Boy of Vienna is the touching story of an orphan boy who meets a street singer who gets him accepted by the Vienna Boys Choir. It is one of the few films in wich the Vienna Choirs Boys are involved. Orphan Boy of Vienna will be of interest mainly to boy choir historians and serious film collectors. It was produced in 1936, a year before the NAZI Anchhluss, by a company operating in Vienna and Amsterdam. This early musical was directed by Max Neufeld and features songs by the actual Vienna Boys Choir.

(Der) schönste Tag meines Lebens" (Austria, 1957)

Der schönste Tag meines Lebens tanslates as "The most day of my life" in English and "Le plus beau jour de ma vie" in French. It is about a Hungarian orphan, who becomes in the end a Choirboy at Vienna. [Note: There is ba close association between Austria and Hungary as they were for a long time unified under Hapsburg rule.] The film involves the boys of the Wiener Sängerknaben with Michael Ande who plays Toni who is the main character--the Hungarian boy. Michaelwas a well known star at that time. Ellinor Jensen plays Toni's sister Maria. Josef Egger plays the capitan. The director is Paul Hörbiger. It is a Max Neufeld film.

Wenn die Glocken hell erklingen (Austria, 1959)

Wenn die Glocken hell erklingen translates into English as "When all the bells ring" and in French as "Quand toutes les cloches sonnent". It is about a choirboy, who visits is grandfather who doesn't know that he's got a grandson. He had banned his daughter from his home because she who went off with a friend he did not like. The film feature Michael Ande, who was a well known star at that time, as main character.