The prelude is the Morgestraich on the Monday following Ash Wednesday. As the clock strikes four in the morning, groups of fifers and drumers in charivari costumes and masks with small headlights start moving through the dark center of down while playing their carnival tunes. The Cliquen, or carnival cliques, carry transparent lanterns made from wood and canvas, most of them over three meters (9 ft) high. The light from within illuminates the carved out silhouette of an event which has marked the past year. The marches played are popular tunes from previous decades, with new ones added from time to time.