by Margaret RegesWith their traditional costumes and wholesome demeanor, Marianne & Michael were the quintessential German volksmusik duo. Marianne Reiner and Michael Adolf Hartl met in Munich in 1973; they hit it off, and started working on a repertoire of traditional German folk songs. The collaboration went on to spawn over 20 studio albums and numerous awards. Married in 1979, the couple went on to participate in the 1986 Eurovision Song Contest preliminaries and host several volksmusik-oriented television programs (Lustige Musikanten, Feste Feiern, and Heimatmelodie). Marianne & Michael continued to perform, record, and make television appearances well into the 2000s.