Germany – suemtravels

A-Trane Berlin Christmas Jazz Special

Not surprisingly, my latest jazz experience at Berlin’s A-Trane was great. It was an unusual group of six seasoned musicians performing with young, handsome and talented Italian singer / pianist – Davide Cerreta. Cerreta appeared with the group in a special tribute to the music of Pete Wyoming Bender, a beloved fellow musician. I sat…

Berlin TV Tower

I waited months to visit Berlin’s TV Tower because it sounded like a tourist trap. Finally decided it was worth a visit for the view alone. Indeed it’s a tourist trap, but I’m glad to have experienced the bird’s-eye perspective of Berlin from the top! The view is amazing even on a cloudy day with snow…

Bach’s Christmas Oratorio Cantatas I-III Berlin Cathedral

I’ve been enjoying Berlin’s holiday celebrations and last night it was Bach’s Christmas Cantatas performed at Berlin Cathedral on Museum Island. The Cathedral Choir performed led by cantor Tobias Brommann. Senior musicians from the Baroque Orchestra must have played another gig last night as there were noticeable mistakes in the music and rolled eyes all around… This…

Berlin Philharmonic – Antonín Dvořák, Hugo Wolf, Franz Schubert

Thursday night was likely my last Berlin Philharmonic performance – at least for a while. The sold-out performance was in Philharmonie Hall where the symphony performed music by Antonín Dvořák, Hugo Wolf, and Franz Schubert. Dvořák and Schubert have long been favorite composers. I remember trying to conquer a Schubert piece as a young piano student –…

Old Master Paintings Gemäldegalerie Berlin

By: suemtravels December 21, 2018September 11, 2019

Berlin, European Cities, GermanyAndrea Previtali, Antoine Pesne, Bacchiacca Cornelis de Vos, Bruegel, Caravaggio, Cima da Conegliano, Dürer, Dutch and Flemish Paintings 17th Century, Francesco Ubertini, Gemäldegalerie Berlin, Gillis Mostaert, Giovanni Paolo Panini, Giuseppe Cesari, Gothic and Renaissance Periods, Gothic Period, Govert Flinck, Heinz Kuckei Collection, Jacomo di Antonio Nigreti, Jacomo di Antonio Nigreti Palma il Vecchio, Jan Davisz de Heem, Jan Steen, Jean Restout, Lucas van Leyden, Lucas van Vlackenborch, Luigi Crespi, Meister der Mansi-Magdalena, Nicola di Maestro Antonio d Ancona, Osias Beert, Palma il Vecchio, Peter Paul Reubens, Pieter Bruegel, Potsdamer Straße, Raphael, Rembrandt, Renaissance Period, Rubens, Sandro Botticelli, Son Jacopo and Giovanni Bellini, Titian, van Eyck, Vermeer2 Comments

Since 2000, Old Master Paintings from the 13th to 18th century have been displayed at Gemäldegalerie. It’s the most beautiful collection I’ve seen! The Gemäldegalerie is part of Berlin’s Kulturforum (Culture Forum), a modern center for art and culture in Potsdamer Straße. It includes museums, concert halls, and libraries where I’ve spent time and learned…

Karajan Academy Mendelssohn and Bach Concert – Berlin Philharmonic

I enjoyed more incredible music last night during a Karajan Academy concert at Berliner Philharmoniker. Exceptional students attend the Academy to learn from distinguished members of the Philharmonic. It was cold with fat snowflakes falling all around, so I stopped for a hot drink at the Potsdamer Platz Christmas Market which was full of merrymakers. The performance hall was packed…

EB Davis and the Super Band at A-Trane Berlin

EB Davis and the Super Band performed at A-Trane last night, and I attended the early show. Although I prefer modern jazz, a good blues band is always fun, and Berlin audiences clearly love this group! Before the performance, I didn’t know much about them except that some members were from the US. I’ve been…

Niko Leopold Quartett b-flat Jazz Club Berlin

The Niko Leopold Quartett appeared at Berlin’s b-flat Acoustic Music + Jazz Club last night! I was totally blown away!! They were magnificent! I booked an advanced reservation and arrived a few minutes before the performance, opting to sit one row back from the stage. The audience was mostly couples and small groups of friends. An interesting British Middle…

Pergamon and Neues Museums Berlin

By: suemtravels December 11, 2018December 12, 2018

Berlin, European Cities, GermanyAncient City of Babylon, Ancient Orient Exhibit Pergamon, Athena Altar Pergamon, Aztec Eagle Snake Cuauhcoatl, “Berlin Golden Hat” from the Bronze Age, Babylon Ishtar Gate, Babylon Processional Way, Babylon Throne Room Facade of King Nebuchadnezzar II, Babylon’s Buildings, Babylonian Goddess Ishtar, Barrigón Figures Guatemala, Berlin Museum Island, Collection of Classical Antiquities New Museum, Egyptian Museum and Papyrus Collection New Museum, Egyptian Queen Nefertiti, Hellenistic Period, Hulboldt Forum, Humboldt Forum, Ishtar Babylonian Goddess of War, Ishtar Gate, Ishtar Gate One of the Original Seven Wonders of the World, Islamic Cultures Exhibit Pergamon, King Nebuchadnezzar II, Kingdom of Pergamon, Market Gate of Milet, Market Gate of Miletus, Mschatta Façade, Museum of Islamic Art, Museum of Prehistory and Early History New Museum, Museum of the Ancient Near East, Mysterious “Berlin Golden Hat” from the Bronze Age, Neanderthal Skull from Le Moustier, Neues Museum Berlin, New Museum Berlin, Pergamon Altar, Pergamon Antiquities Collections, Pergamon Museum Berlin2 Comments

Yesterday was rainy and gray, so I spent several hours exploring two museums – the Pergamon and Neues. Both are on Berlin’s Museum Island and spectacular! Pergamon Museum The famous Pergamon is known as a “visitor magnet”. It’s named after the Kingdom of Pergamon an ancient city in northwest Turkey. During the Hellenistic Period (281–133 BC)…

Berlin’s Bundestag, Reichstag Building and Dome

By: suemtravels December 7, 2018January 15, 2019

Berlin, Germany299 German Constituencies, Activist Marie Elisabeth Lüders, Berlin's Government District, Brandenburg Gate, British Architect Norman Foster, Charlemagne Holy Roman Emperor, Double Helix, Dr. Wolfgang Schäuble, Fall of Berlin to the Soviets in 1945, Federal Republic of Germany, German Bundestag, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, German Federal Assembly, German National Parliament, German Unification Treaty 1990, Habsburgs, Hitler Regime, Hitler's Nazi Regime, Marie-Elisabeth Lüders House, Medieval Habsburgs, Nazism, Personalized Proportional Representation, Plenary Chamber, Plenary Hall, Reichstag, Reichstag Building, Reichstag Fire, Reichstag Glass Dome, The Battle of Berlin, Weimar Republic, Wolfgang Schäuble President of the Federal Assembly and the German BundestagLeave a Comment

Last night I visited the German Bundestag and toured the Reichstag dome. I took the U-Bahn and then enjoyed the city lights during a misty walk along the canal. Reichstag security is tight with guards patrolling the building inside and out. You must register in advance and present your passport for identification. It’s a tedious drill…

Bolero Berlin – Chamber Music, Philharmonic, and Latin Jazz

By: suemtravels December 4, 2018December 7, 2018

Berlin, European Cities, GermanyAccordionist Cathrin Pfeifer, Afro-Brazilian Dancer Ismael Ivo Jocelyn, Argentine Tango, Astor Piazzolla., Bajazzo and Experimenti Berlin, Berlin Philharmonic, Berlin Philharmonic Ensemble Bolero Berlin, Bolero Berlin, Charlie Eitner, Consuelo Velázquez's Besamé Mucho, Cuban Bolero, Daniel “Topo” Gioia Percussion, Danzon or Brazilian Bossa Nova, Django Reinhardt, Django Reinhardts Troublant Boléro, Duke Ellington, Esko Laine Double Bass, Giora Feidman, Giuseppe Verdi, Giuseppe Verdi's Rigoletto, Helmut Nieberle Guitar, Hendrik Meurkens, Ipanema, Jocelyn B. Smith Band, John Newton, Lalo Schifrin, Latin Jazz Band Pa'que, Latin Percussion Competition Germany, Latin Percussion Tambourine, Manfred Price Clarinet and Saxophone, Maria Farantouri, Martin Stegner Viola, Percussion Lecturer Academy of Music "Hanns Eisler" Berlin, Raphael Haeger Piano, Richard Wagner, Richard Wagner's Tannhäuser, Soloists of the Berlin PhilharmonicLeave a Comment

Last night was another evening of outstanding music in Berlin! Bolero Berlin performed at the Berlin Philharmonic and finding a group of musicians with more charm or talent would be difficult! After becoming “enchanted and inspired by melancholic, mysterious, sensual Cuban bolero,” violist Martin Stegner created the Bolero Berlin ensemble. The popular group fuses chamber music and philharmonic with Latin American…