Saphirs adapt for American audience

By RON LARSEN

Journal Staff Writer

NEW ULM -- The Saphirs band from the Landshut area near Munich made its Heritagefest debut on the Bayerwald open-air stage Friday, serving up an upbeat-tempo mix of Bavarian and Austrian wedding songs.

For the group's founder, Erwin Rasshofer who does vocals and plays the accordion, there was a certain amount of irony in the band's music selections for Heritagefest.

"In Germany, we play songs in English and Schlager music," Rasshofer explained. "We play very few -- if any -- polkas and waltzes. So what you're hearing here are songs that we play for Bavarian and Austrian weddings."

Schlager music is the "hit," for most popular, songs from a particular decade.

"Right now, the Schlager is songs from the mid and late '70s," said Sophie Scherer who does vocals and plays drums. "The people sing all these songs, and they dress up in exaggerated clothes of the '70s."

"Anyway, we knew that we couldn't come over here to the Heritagefest and sing English songs and play Schlager music," Rasshofer added, "so we're playing the wedding songs. In Bavaria, the bride is taken to another place where she's held. They drink wine and sing these songs."

Rasshofer formed the band, with other members, in 1969. Lambert Weber who does vocals and plays guitar has been with the group 11 years, and Scherer has been playing with the band for four years.

"The most junior member of the group is Ulrich Scherer who has been with us for three years," Rasshofer said. All live in communities near Munich.

When the original group formed the band 33 years ago, record players were state of the art in Germany.

"So we took our name, which means the gem, from the sapphire used in making the record needles which were used at the time," Rasshofer said.

The Saphirs who average about one gig a week play mostly at weddings and festivals, including Faschings, as well as for some business meetings.

"We'll play in hotels and other places, but we don't play in bars," Rasshofer said.

The band bills itself as semi-professional because all members have full-time "day" jobs. Rasshofer is export manager for a firm that makes energy-conserving rapid-closing doors; Ulrich Scherer is an oil and gas distributor; Lambert Weber is a BMW parts manager, and Sophie Scherer teaches percussion.

The Saphirs like to make "a connection" with their audiences, whether it be having them leap up out of their seats to the strains of the "Snow Waltz" or locking arms and swaying to their music.

"Our first impression of New Ulm was that they are very nice, friendly people, and the host families brought us into their homes," Rasshofer said. "It's not so much like that at home. People in Germany are a little more distant."