One of the early names of Minnesingers is that of Tannhauser, or Tannhäuser, who was born between 1210 and 1220. To him is credited a Busslied (song of penitence), but it was probably in existence long before customary among penitents, and only later ascribed to him. The participation of Tannhäuser in the song tournament of the Wartburg as represented in the Wagner opera, is obviously a dramatic license of the composer, as the event took place before his birth, in 1208. One of the most striking figures is Nithart von Riuwenthal, who endeavored to infuse new life into the courtly formalism of _Minnegesang_ by drawing upon the folk song and folk dance.[80] He called the new genre which he created, and which was a mild parody upon the peasant tunes then popular in rural Austria and Bavaria, _dörperliche singen_ (village singing), in contrast to the _höfische singen_ (courtly singing) of this class. His dance songs differ from other Minnesinger’s lyrics in their syllabic structure, as of necessity their pronounced rhythm did not admit superfluous syllables. The melodic correspondence between rhyming verses already noted in Troubadour _chansons_ is a prominent feature with Nithart, but more remarkable than this is the fine imitation of melodic elements corresponding to short rhyming lines within simple verses (_Stollen_ or _Abgesang_). [Illustration: Music] Wis wil-kom-men mei-nen schin! Wer möcht uns er-gez-zen din? Wan du kannst ver-swen-den pin. Daz sagt uns di-siu diet. Der win-der ist so lang hie g’leg’n. Uf dem veld und in den weg’n: Wil-li-klich gab er den seg’n. Da er von hin-nen----schiet. Nu wil du di hel-de a-ber ern. Und wil klei-nin vo-ge-lin die sue-ze stim-me lern. Daz sie bald in dem Wald ir sue-zen sank ge-mern. Wizlaw von Rügen, another Minnesinger who tried to leave the beaten path, showed a marked tendency toward a more direct and faithful reflection of the emotional contents of his song. His _senende claghe_ (longing complaint), in which he emulates what he refers to as the _senende wise_ (melody) of the untutored man, is an evidence of the attempt of Minnesinger at 'characterization,’ and we frequently meet with such specific names of _Töne_ or _Weisen_, which indicate the intention to convey an individual sentiment in melody. The apparent sameness in many of the tunes seems less insistent when we consider the question of _tempo_ which must have differentiated their performance, but which was never indicated in the manuscripts.