Antlaßsingen: Folk Singing Right at LOIDLs Guesthouse

When the bells of the little Johannisberg chapel ring out over Traunkirchen at 9 pm on Maundy Thursday, after the evening liturgy, people gather for the "Antlaßsingen" – a custom that has survived only here.

In the 17th century, the Jesuits laid out the Calvary hill of Traunkirchen – complete with a chapel. That makes it the oldest in the region, and it became the model for others across the Salzkammergut. The Antlaßsingen, a Passion custom, is just as old. It is never really announced: people simply gather, and off it goes.

"Meine Herrn und Frauen lassts euch sagn, da Hammer hat neini gschlagn!" – Ladies and gentlemen, hear the call: the clock has just struck nine!

The assembled crowd then continues in multi-part folk song. The singing is repeated on the hour, each time at a different station – until 3 in the morning. Towards the end, the brave choir has usually thinned out quite a bit.

The fifth station of the Antlaßsingen is right outside LOIDLs Guesthouse. As our guest, you experience this extraordinary custom up close – in the heart of the village, in the middle of the night.

The word "Antlaß", by the way, comes from Middle High German and means release, indulgence, absolution. A piece of living medieval history that comes back to life in Traunkirchen every single year.