Ale to the Chief

Sep 14

Have you been part of the world’s largest chicken dance?

If you’ve ever been to Oktoberfest Zinzinnati, the odds are pretty good that you have.

In 1994, the inaugural year for the chicken dance, the record was set, when more than 48,000 people flapped their arms and shook their tailfeathers in pursuit of the feat, documented in the Guinness Book of Records, 1995-97 editions. That year, the Crown Prince of Bavaria himself helped set the world record. Since then, celebrities, both local and intergalactic, have acted as the grand marshal of the event.

This year keeps that tradition intact, with members of the Cincinnati Fire Deprtment stepping up to the chicken dance challenge. The firefighters will be led by Captain Eric Tombragel who has served on the Cincinnati Fire Department for 33 years with the last seven as Fire Captain for special events. Oktoberfest Zinzinnati marks the last big event of his career.

Last year, the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber renamed the World’s Largest Chicken Dance in honor of longtime Chamber employee and local media legend Rich Walburg. Walburg was the Chicken Dance’s biggest fans and had a hand in booking some of the most popular grand marshals over the years.

Widely known as the “Chicken Dance,” this dance song was composed by Werner Thomas in the 1970s in Davos, Switzerland, and was originally called “Der Ententanz,” which means The Duck Dance, but became known as the Vogeltanz, Chicken Dance, and also as Dance Little Bird. There were many versions of this that became hit songs, but the song and dance have had the greatest longevity in the U.S., where it has become a popular German heritage song.