No Advent concert in the Schongau parish church - dispute between pastor and music school director

Created: 11/26/2022, 4:00 p.m

Music school boss Marcus Graf (left) and city pastor Norbert Marxer (right) do not agree.

© Christine Wolfle

There will be no Advent concert by the Schongau town band in the parish church - because Pastor Norbert Marxer doesn't want it.

The reasons go back a long way.

Schongau – In order to understand why an Advent concert by the Schongau town band was even up for discussion, because it doesn't take place every year, you have to go back a few years.

At that time, the agreement was reached between Pastor Norbert Marxer, the mountaineering choir, the "Festive Summer in der Wies" and the town band that the first two named could give a concert on the second and third Sunday in Advent, and the town band on the fourth.

If there is a long Advent season.

This year it's five weeks, the longest possible time.

That's why the conductor of the town band, Andreas Immler, assumed that there would be a concert this year.

But then came the "no": There was no further clarifying conversation, but only an e-mail exchange, which is available to the editors, between Immler, Marxer and music school boss Marcus Graf, which became more and more acute.

Andreas Immler is the conductor of a town band in Schongau.

© Christine Wolfle

In this case, the accusation of a personal dislike of the pastor for the town band is just as much in the room as the pastor being “harassed and attacked” by the musicians.

Not a good basis for goal-oriented discussions or peaceful coexistence.

Marxer and Graf have clashed several times in recent years

But the allegations cannot be dismissed entirely.

Whereby the pastor's personal dislike is not directed towards the town band and its conductors, in this case they are the ones who suffer, but towards the head of the music school, Marcus Graf.

Marxer and Graf have clashed several times in recent years, until the situation escalated.

Marcus Graf is the head of the music school in Schongau.

© Christine Wolfle

The head of the music school "no longer feels welcome" in the church and therefore "as a private person no longer makes my musical services available to the parish community" - like at the benefit concert last Sunday.

But as a musician in the town band and in his position as head of the music school, he did.

Marxer counters that his decisions are not respected and that Graf still has to go one step further "with his style".

Perhaps this disagreement between the two also contributed to the decision that the pastor did not want the Advent concert.

also read

Special Christmas campaign: Pensioners donate an energy flat rate to the needy - imitators wanted

Christmas markets in the Weilheim-Schongau district: All dates at a glance

(By the way: everything from the region is now also available in our regular Schongau newsletter.)

Pastor doesn't want a concert every Sunday in Advent

Officially, Marxer justifies the decision by saying that he does not want a concert every Sunday in Advent, but at most two, because there should be more "space for church-specific forms of spiritual celebration and prayer" as preparation for high festivals.

“Does everything always have to be so concentrated in Advent?

There are other opportunities for concerts!” says Marxer.

He understood the agreement from back then as “can, but not have to”.

Norbert Marxer is the parish priest in Schongau.

© Christine Wolfle

In principle, he has nothing against concerts if "the organizers respect the church and act with courtesy".

In the recent past, however, there have been cases of musicians leaving the church in a mess and the sacristan spending hours cleaning up.

"By that I don't mean the town band," the pastor clarifies.

Because he has no personal aversion to them.

On the contrary.

That's why he also wants to reach out a hand for reconciliation: "After the Christmas season, I will invite all the responsible musical directors of the choirs and the city band to a round table.

Then we can think about how to divide up the concerts over the year.

Because I don't see the Advent concerts of the Bergsteigerchor and the Festliches Sommer as set in stone with this optional agreement.

You could take turns."

deacon sick

It remains to be seen whether Deacon Hans Steinhilber will be present at the meeting.

He had to vacate his office in the Transfiguration of Christ and has been on sick leave ever since.

But why should the popular deacon move back to the central office in Kirchenstrasse?

“Because I would like to work more closely with him again,” explains Marxer.

And he very much hopes that Steinhilber will come back soon.

You can find more current news from the region around Schongau at Merkur.de/Schongau.