Tag Archives: Music
Grand Opening of the Elbphilharmonie Posted by Sten on Jan 20, 2017
Last week on Wednesday, one of the largest, most modern and acoustically best Konzerthäuser (concert halls) in the world had its Eröffnungsfeier (inaugural ceremony) in Hamburg – the Elbphilharmonie (Elbe Philharmonic Hall). It was highly anticipated, and the opening was a great Erfolg (success). However, there were some issues with building it. And is it really that toll (nice)? Is it worth the millions of Steuergelder (tax…
The German Boogieman Posted by Constanze on Dec 7, 2016
Guten Tag! Today, inspired by a kids’ song I was reminded of recently, the theme is German mythological monsters! The kids’ song is called Es Tanzt Ein Bi-Ba Butzemann. I know this song from my childhood, as many German children probably will. The song is about a Butzemann dancing around in somebody’s house. The first…
German Children’s Stories 1 Posted by Constanze on Jul 22, 2016
Guten Tag! A little while ago somebody requested posts on children’s books and stories. I thought, where better to start than the German books my mum used to read to me as a child! DER STRUWWELPETER Der Struwwelpeter is a very famous German children’s book by Dr. Heinrich Hoffmann. Hoffmann wrote it because he couldn’t…
Untranslatable German: Tote Hose Posted by Constanze on Jun 23, 2016
Guten Tag! It’s time for another untranslatable German word – but it’s a special one, because it’s technically a phrase that is used in place of a single word. Confused? Don’t be! It’s a funny one. Today’s phrase is ‘tote Hose’. What does tote Hose mean? In German, ‘tote Hose’ is used to describe something…
Ballermann! The German way to celebrate life (for some)! Posted by Sten on May 30, 2014
The summer can be a party! In Germany, this Feiern (partying) can take very special, interesting forms. A very well-known form is Ballermann, a word combination of the words ballern, which is only used colloquially for drinking excessive amounts of alcohol, and the word Mann, which just means man. Probably this combination was chosen because ballern can rather be ascribed to men. This…
German folk music goes rock Posted by Sandra Rösner on Mar 23, 2014
What happens when six young people from Germany, Austria and Switzerland spend time together in a students’ flat-sharing community in Munich? Along with other young people, who are hanging around in exactly the same flat-sharing community, they author the one and only ultimate house rule: To have a full house during the day and make…
German music and lyrics: Revolverheld „Das kann uns keiner nehmen“ Posted by Sandra Rösner on Oct 14, 2013
One day last weeks I had to do some shopping. When I was waiting at the traffic light along with other cars I had the time to change the channels of my car radio. I often do this to find a song I like and to which I can sing along with. Eventually, I found…