Aufsteirern draws more than 100,000 visitors to Graz

More than 100,000 people attended the Aufsteirern folk culture festival in Graz on Saturday, with even more visitors expected on Sunday, ORF reported. The event is being held in the city centre for the 25th time this weekend.

The festival features about 250 hours of programming across 15 stages and dance floors. A new Volksliederwerk stage at Lesliehof offers crash courses in yodeling, tavern songs, Poschn and Gstanzlsingen. Youth groups and emerging ensembles have also been given more space this year.

A new mobile app includes a search function to help visitors find dance partners known as taxitänzer. It is also intended to help users arrange carpools and meet people for a glass of wine or socialising.

Organisers Alexandra and Markus Lientscher said the festival had initially been seen as something unusual in an urban setting. Over the past 25 years, they said, traditional clothing had become a lifestyle rather than something outdated.

The festival presents performances by associations, dancers and singers from across Styria, rather than staged theatre, Alexandra Lientscher said.

Across the 25 festivals, about 3,450 musicians, 20,000 choir singers, 7,500 folk dancers and 6,500 brass musicians have performed. Most belong to folk culture associations, whose members have contributed about 800,000 hours of voluntary work to the event.

According to a study cited by Markus Lientscher, the festival generates economic value of about 17 million euros in Styria. He said the event’s main focus remained Styrian folk culture, although its popularity also created economic effects.

ORF is broadcasting a special edition of Steiermark heute from the festival on Sunday at 7 p.m., featuring music, dance, food, handicrafts, traditional clothing and prominent visitors.