Franz Lang was born on 28 December 1930 in Munich, Germany, and became known as the German yodeler Franzl Lang. His early life in Munich saw him trained as a toolmaker, but at the age of nine he received an accordion that would become his signature instrument. Franzl Lang’s first recordings appeared in 1955 with the single "Auf In's Alpenland" / "Bei Der Nacht Und In Der Fruah", followed by a series of EPs such as Beim Jodelwirt (1959) and Franzl Lang Singt Und Jodelt (1960). He signed with Philips Records, releasing the EP Ist Trumpf in 1961 and the single "Das Kufsteiner Lied" in 1968, which reached nationwide popularity and earned him a gold record. Over the next decade, Franzl Lang issued albums including Bergvagabunden (1970), Echo Der Berge (1971), and Der Alpenkönig (1973), and appeared in films such as Salzburger Geschichten (1956) and Der Orgelbauer von St. Marien (1961). His touring career spanned Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, and he collaborated with television programs like Lustigen Musikanten on ZDF. By the early 1990s, Franzl Lang had sold over 10 million records, earned 20 gold discs and one platinum disc, and received the Medaille de Hermann Lons. He passed away on 6 December 2015 in Munich, leaving a legacy of more than 500 recorded songs in the folk and yodeling tradition.
