Oktoberfest Party

Hire the NoteWorthy band to make your Oktoberfest party memorable!

Are you planning an Oktoberfest party?

No matter where Oktoberfest it is celebrated, there are a few common staples: lively music, mouthwatering food, and big pints of beer.

Oktoberfest music

The NoteWorthy band will perform the music that your guests will enjoy. We can design a set list with you while planning for your event. This will include mixing in some German oompah music. The NoteWorthy band is a well-established local band that will bring fantastic music to your Oktoberfest party including a light show that is in sync to the music.

Oktoberfest foods

  • Soft pretzels are a common food at Oktoberfests. Be sure to provide Bavarian sweet mustard for dipping the pretzels.
  • Currywurst is a spicy snack. Simply grill a Bratwurst-style sausage and cut it into pieces. Warm some German curry ketchup (example Hela) and pour it over the sausage pieces. Sprinkle with curry powder and serve with a genuine German bread roll.
  • Other simple snacks and appetizers you can offer your guests are Beer-Marinated Bratwurst Sausages, Hot and Crusty Frankfurter Rolls, or Sauerkraut and Salami Pizza. All these recipes are quick and simple to make.
  • You can also put together a selection of German cheeses, whole grain breads, mustards and pickles and put out bowls of hard pretzels and Erdnussflips (peanut corn snacks) and prepare a tray of German cookies and candies as a dessert offering.

Oktoberfest Decorations

For a genuine Bavarian feel to your party, decorate using traditional Oktoberfest colors. The official colors of the state of Bavaria are cobalt blue and white so choose napkins, streamers, tablecloths, paper plates and plastic silverware in these colors. You can purchase Oktoberfest party supplies from your local party store or from online sources. You can create ambience with small blue and white votive candles on the table or put decorative fairy lights in the window or hang them from the ceiling.

Origins of Oktoberfest
Oktoberfest is the world’s largest Volksfest (beer festival and travelling funfair) which is held annually in Munich, Bavaria, Germany, it is a 16 day folk festival running from September into October. More than 6 million people attend. It has been an important part of Bavarian culture and the event has been held annually since the year 1810.

Popular Oktoberfest Songs
1. I Salute You (Ein Prosit der Gemutlichkeit): This is THE song of Oktoberfest as it is played like clockwork in the beer tents every 15 minutes. The song starts out repeating Ein Prosit (Eyn Pro-zit) Der Gemütlichkeit (Dare Gay-mute-lich-kite) meaning I Salute To Our Cozy Friendship & Good Times We’re Having Together. The next part of the song is a countdown to G’suffa (zuffa) meaning take a big drink. It is said that the beer tents started play the song 4 times an hour to get people to take more drinks so they could sell more beer, and it sure has paid off. Ein Prosit ends with the band asking you if you are having fun with either Ziggy Zocky Ziggy Zocky or Ticky Tocky Ticky Tocky and you respond Oi Oi Oi.

2. The Flyer Song (Fliegerlied): Released in 2008, a cover of The Flyer Song by Tim Toupet has cemented it in Oktoberfest lore even though it’s a children’s song. about animals. The full name of the song is actually Today Is Such A Beautiful Day, but because of the crazy dance involved the nickname Flyer Song has stuck. You’ll do a lot of singing “La La La La La” & “Schwimm, Schwimm, Schwimm”, it’s the dance that really makes the Fyler Song fun. The song has you flying like a plane, then acting strong like a tiger, being tall like a giraffe, hopping like a kangaroo, and of course swimming.

3. Hey Baby – If You’ll be My Girl: Hey Baby has been a huge hit in America ever since Bruce Channel’s original in 1961 hit #1 on the charts, but it was DJ Ötzi that brought it to Germany. The German speaking DJ from Austria released a remix to the song in the year 2000 that was popular on radios World-wide.

4. Mountain Mother (Sierra Madre): The song was originally a 1970’s ballad, but it wasn’t until an emotional cover by the Austrian band Zillertaler Schürzenjäger in 1987 that the song really latched on and became a mega hit. Sierra Madre is about a field worker who is greeted by the mountains in the morning as the day breaks and greeted by them again at sunset as he returns home from a hard day’s work.

5. Country Roads: American musician John Denver is still huge in Europe and even bigger at Oktoberfest as country roads take you home. Ironically Denver’s real name was Henry John Deutschendorf as he was actually part German. Many German and Polish bands have done popular covers of this and other John Denver songs. It’s not just this part of Europe that loves John Denver. If you go into bars or pubs anywhere you are bound to hear it at some point. We have fond memories of hearing Country Roads belted out by locals while visiting both England and Ireland.

6. The Donkey Song (Esellied): This is one of the only traditional Oompah band songs to actually make our list. It is one of the main Bavarian songs that you’ll hear and Oktoberfest celebrations in America. The Donkey Song is also one of the most popular pump up songs at Oktoberfest in Munich. The full name of the Donkey Song in German is Esellied (Iha Iha Iha oh). It is about a Donkey that just wont go home as he waits outside for the lovely female donkey Veronica.

7. Hands to Heaven (Hände zum Himmel): Hands to Heaven is one of the idealistic songs that should come to your mid when you picture Oktoberfest. This lively song asks for you to put your beers down raise you hands and clap along. Basically the song asks to you cast aside your worries for the day and be merry.

8. Angels: The smash hit ballad “Angles” by British signer Robbie Williams seems to get bigger and bigger each year at Oktoberfest.

9. Sweet Caroline: The chorus of this American classic are known by pretty much every person in the beer tents, no matter what country they are from. In 2009, DJ Ötzi released a remix to Sweet Caroline that was popular in Germany and Austria.

10. Cowboys and Indians (Cowboy und Indianer): Like the Flier Song list above, this is another Kids Song that has become a hit with the Germans because of its silly dance; the Lasso Dance. The dance is basically pretending like you are riding a horse, then using a lasso, followed by a lot of humping motions.

11. Seven Nation Army: The chant from the song Seven Nation Army has made the American band the White Stripes a huge hit not just at soccer games, but also at Oktoberfest.

12. Next Door To Alice: Originally released in 1976 by Smokie, it is a song about a guy who lived next to Alice for 24 years and he never got to tell he how he felt about he before she moved away.

13. Fürstenfeld: Preformed by the Austrian group STS, Fürstenfeld is one of our favorite songs in the Oktoberfest tents. The song is about a young man from Fürstenfeld, a small town in Southeastern Austria near Graz, who is living in Vienna and is home sick.

14. Wahnsinn Hölle, Hölle, Hölle: If you want to see some happy Germans singing and dancing around, just wait for this party favorite by Wolfgang Petry.

15. Anton Aus Tirol: This is really a love it or hate song that is very popular song at Oktoberfest. In 2000 the hit version of the song by DJ Ötzi reached#1 in both German & Austria and it was quickly converted into the Oompah brass band style for Oktoberfest.

16. The Hofbräuhaus Song (Steht Ein Hofbräuhaus): Written in 1935, this may be the most classic Oompah song in Munich. The song pays respect to all the great aspects Hofbrauhaus and is a must if you are visiting the old beer in addition to the Oktoberfest tents. The highlight of the song is the repeated countdown of Eins (1), Zwei (2), G’suffa (zuffa) meaning take a big drink.

17. Breathless Through the Night (Atemlos durch die Nacht): Since it was released in late 2013 by Helene Fischer, Breathless Through the Night has become and instant German party hit. The following year, this song about love and living in the moment, became one of the main Oktoberfest jams.

18. 99 Luftballons: This mega hit by artist Nena maybe the most widely known German pop song from the 1980s and is still rocking Oktoberfest crowds today. It doesn’t have the same traditional music feel or crowd chanting as some of the other German songs on this list, but it is still guaranteed to put everyone in your tent in a good mood with pure nostalgia.

More about Oktoberfest

  • Oktoberfest began as a wedding celebration. In 1810, Bavarian Crown Prince Ludwig married Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen, and all of the citizens were invited to the celebration. Since then, the festival has grown to include horse races, games, rides, music, and eventually beer.
  • Oktoberfest was originally non-alcoholic. That’s right — the largest beer drinking festival in the world once did not include beer. In the festival’s early days, beer was only served outside the fairgrounds, but it didn’t take long to incorporate kegs into the celebration. Now, more than 7.5 million liters are consumed each year. That’s a lot of beer.
  • The drinking doesn’t start until the mayor says “O’ zapft is!” Oktoberfest officially starts when the mayor taps the first keg, declaring “O’ zapft is!” or “It’s tapped!” in English. The first person to get a beer is traditionally the Minister-President of the State of Bavaria, but after that, you’re free to “Prost!” (toast) the day away.
  • If the beer isn’t from Munich, it’s not Oktoberfest. Even festivals have their rules. Oktoberfest regulations say that the only beer that can be served for the celebration must be from one of Munich’s breweries — Paulaner, Spaten, Hacker-Pschorr, Augustiner, Hofbräu, and Löwenbräu. And, like all other German brews, Oktoberfest beers must pass the “purity” law or Reinheitsgebot, which was passed in 1516 to ensure the beer’s quality. Yeah, Germany doesn’t mess around when it comes to brewing.
  • It’s all about love. Gingerbread cookies, complete with sweet messages made of icing called “Lebkuchen” hearts, are festival staples. They even come with ribbons so your “schatz,” or sweetheart, can wear it with pride. Cookies, and someone you love, complete the Oktoberfest diet.