Alf Poier
Encyclopedia
Alf Poier is an Austria
n artist and stand-up comedian
.
Born in Judenburg
in Styria
, he started doing cabaret
in 1995 in Graz
, and has won several prizes for his work, including the Salzburger Stier in 1998, the Deutscher Kleinkunstpreis, Prix Phanteon and RTL Comedy Award in 2000 and the Austrian Karl in 2002.
In 2003, Poier participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2003
and secured 6th place with his entry Weil der Mensch zählt
("Man is The Measure Of All Things"). The song, and his stage act, were a parody of the contest's excesses.
Although his result was considerably better than most of the pre-contest predictions, Poier spent several hours mischievously telling anyone that would listen that his 'low' placing was an outrage, that Europe had demonstrably shown itself to have no musical taste, and that he wasn't sure if the shame would permit him to return to Austria. This included an appearance on Liquid Eurovision, shown on the UK
channel BBC Three
immediately after the 2003 contest ended, where after saying the above he shouted "I hate this contest! Fuck this contest!", causing much laughter from the presenters.
In 2005, his bid to represent Austria in the contest for a second time put him in the spotlight for more serious reasons, as some people took offence at the lyrics of one of his songs, Good Old Europe is Dying. Having deleted the offending lines, albeit while insisting they had been misinterpreted, Poier took the characteristically 'oddball' song to the brink of securing the Austrian national selection, only to be "narrowly" beaten by folk band Global Kryner
. In the end, he arguably only missed out because, in Y asi, Global Kryner had somehow succeeded in crafting a song that is even more colourful than anything Poier has yet attempted, featuring as it does Latin-style music liberally peppered with bouts of yodelling. Nevertheless, Poier was able to - very loudly - claim a moral victory after it emerged that his song had actually garnered the most votes (2nd place with 106.000 for Poier, 1st place with 60.000 for Global Kryner), and had only been thwarted by the regional points system that was used.
Alf Poiers statement after the show:
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n artist and stand-up comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
.
Born in Judenburg
Judenburg
- People :* Renate Götschl* Egon Haar * Herbert Hufnagl, journalist * Gernot Jurtin* Christian Muthspiel, jazz musician, painter* Kurt Muthspiel, composer * Wolfgang Muthspiel* Christian Pfannberger* Walter Pfrimer* Georg Pichler...
in Styria
Styria (state)
Styria is a state or Bundesland, located in the southeast of Austria. In area it is the second largest of the nine Austrian federated states, covering 16,401 km². It borders Slovenia as well as the other Austrian states of Upper Austria, Lower Austria, Salzburg, Burgenland, and Carinthia. ...
, he started doing cabaret
Cabaret
Cabaret is a form, or place, of entertainment featuring comedy, song, dance, and theatre, distinguished mainly by the performance venue: a restaurant or nightclub with a stage for performances and the audience sitting at tables watching the performance, as introduced by a master of ceremonies or...
in 1995 in Graz
Graz
The more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...
, and has won several prizes for his work, including the Salzburger Stier in 1998, the Deutscher Kleinkunstpreis, Prix Phanteon and RTL Comedy Award in 2000 and the Austrian Karl in 2002.
In 2003, Poier participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2003
Eurovision Song Contest 2003
The Eurovision Song Contest 2003 was the forty-eighth Eurovision Song Contest, held at the Skonto Hall in Riga, Latvia on 24 May 2003. The hosts were Marie N and Renārs Kaupers. Sertab Erener, the Turkish entrant, won the contest with "Everyway That I Can", scoring 167 points. The winning...
and secured 6th place with his entry Weil der Mensch zählt
Weil Der Mensch Zählt
"Weil der Mensch zählt" was the Austrian representative in the Eurovision Song Contest 2003, performed in German as well as Steiermarkish by Alf Poier....
("Man is The Measure Of All Things"). The song, and his stage act, were a parody of the contest's excesses.
Although his result was considerably better than most of the pre-contest predictions, Poier spent several hours mischievously telling anyone that would listen that his 'low' placing was an outrage, that Europe had demonstrably shown itself to have no musical taste, and that he wasn't sure if the shame would permit him to return to Austria. This included an appearance on Liquid Eurovision, shown on the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
channel BBC Three
BBC Three
BBC Three is a television network from the BBC broadcasting via digital cable, terrestrial, IPTV and satellite platforms. The channel's target audience includes those in the 16-34 year old age group, and has the purpose of providing "innovative" content to younger audiences, focusing on new talent...
immediately after the 2003 contest ended, where after saying the above he shouted "I hate this contest! Fuck this contest!", causing much laughter from the presenters.
In 2005, his bid to represent Austria in the contest for a second time put him in the spotlight for more serious reasons, as some people took offence at the lyrics of one of his songs, Good Old Europe is Dying. Having deleted the offending lines, albeit while insisting they had been misinterpreted, Poier took the characteristically 'oddball' song to the brink of securing the Austrian national selection, only to be "narrowly" beaten by folk band Global Kryner
Global Kryner
Global Kryner is a six-piece Austrian folk group, consisting of clarinet player Christof Spörk, bass trombonist, tenor and yodeller Sebastian Fuchsberger, guitarist Edi Koehldorfer, trumpet player Karl Rossmann, accordion player Anton Sauprügl, and jazz vocalist Sabine Stieger...
. In the end, he arguably only missed out because, in Y asi, Global Kryner had somehow succeeded in crafting a song that is even more colourful than anything Poier has yet attempted, featuring as it does Latin-style music liberally peppered with bouts of yodelling. Nevertheless, Poier was able to - very loudly - claim a moral victory after it emerged that his song had actually garnered the most votes (2nd place with 106.000 for Poier, 1st place with 60.000 for Global Kryner), and had only been thwarted by the regional points system that was used.
Alf Poiers statement after the show:
- "Wer auf dieser Welt Gerechtigkeit fordert ist ein Idiot!
- Wer auf dieser Welt Verständnis fordert ist geistesgestört!
- Ich danke Euch allen im Namen der Wahrheit!
- Alf Poier Platz 2 mit 106.000 Stimmen
- Global Kryner Platz 1 mit 60.000 Stimmen
- Euer geistesgestörter Idiot Alf Poier"
- "Who demands justice in this world is an idiot!
- Who demands understanding in this world suffers on mental disorder!
- I thank you all in the name of truth!
- Alf Poier, 2nd place with 106.000 votes
- Global Kryner, 1st place with 60.000 votes
- Your mental disordered idiot, Alf Poier"
Discography
- 1996: Himmel, Arsch & Gartenzwerg (Album-CD, Alf Poier und die obersteirische Wolfshilfe)
- 2001: Zen (Album-CD)
- 2003: Weil der Mensch zählt (Single-CD)
- 2003: Alf singt die schönsten Lieder mit Band (Album-CD)
- 2003: MitsubischiMitsubishiThe Mitsubishi Group , Mitsubishi Group of Companies, or Mitsubishi Companies is a Japanese multinational conglomerate company that consists of a range of autonomous businesses which share the Mitsubishi brand, trademark and legacy...
(DVD, Neuerscheinung 2008) - 2005: Good Old Europe Is Dying (Single-CD)
- 2005: Lustige Lieder der Traurigkeit und Not (Album-CD)
- 2007: Zen (DVD)
- 2007: Kill Eulenspiegel (DVD)
- 2009: Satsang (DVD)
- 2010: This Isn’t It (Album-CD, live)
- 2011: Happy Song (Download-Single, Alf Poier & Die Obersteirische Wolfshilfe)