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Willkommen !

Das Deutsche Kulturzentrum Santa Cruz wurde ursprünglich 1888 gegründet und heißt alle willkommen, die sich für deutsche Kultur, Musik und Sprache interessieren und/oder deutschsprachige Herkunft haben.

Originally founded in 1888, the German Cultural Center of Santa Cruz welcomes everyone who is interested in German culture, music and language and/or has German speaking heritage.  

To celebrate German and German speaking culture we host:

– Unterhaltungsabende/ Conversation evenings

– Büchereitage/Library Days

– Liederkranz/Song Circles

– German Classes- Summer Book Club

– Kinoabende/Movie Evenings

– Cultural Events: Music Concerts & Art events:

​* Karneval/Fasching/Fastnacht

* Oktoberfest

* Martinstag Lanteren Umzug 

* Nikolaus Fest

* Adventsingen

* Annual Membership Meetings

Check out ACTIVITIES for more information.

Announcements

Family Friendly
Celebrate Nikolausfest every December
Friday, December 6, 2024

Children all over the world know him and love him: In Germany, he is called Nikolaus. In France, he's Pere Noel. British children call him Father Christmas. And of course, you know him as Santa Claus.

Children tell lots of fun stories about Santa Claus, Pere Noel, or Nikolaus. All of these stories remind us of how much we're loved and of how happy we are when we give. The earliest stories we know were told about Nikolaus, the bishop of Myra.

In Germany, Nikolaus Day or Sankt Nikolaustag is celebrated on December 6th.

Benefit Concert
Espressivo Orchestra

Espressivo Orchestra will be hosting a Benefit Concert at our Hall.
More information is coming soon!

https://espressorch.org/

Die Bücherei für Klein und Gross
Our German Library for ALL Ages is Open

    The 3rd Saturday of every month


Library Dates in 2024: 

 Oct 19, Nov 16, Dec 21 

10:00 to 11:30 AM

Our library collection includes over 2000 children and youth materials along with over 600 books for adults! 

 

CLICK HERE for the catalog of our children and youth books.

(our books for adults are not catalogued)

    

 Ein HERZLICHES  DANKESCHÖN

    to our LIbrary Team:

Karin Behrens

Andre Anukhin

Kyunghee Chung

Torsten Erhardt

Hannah Erhardt

Vicky Hennerkes

Ingrid Hostetter

Christa Jaster

Clark Magruder

Kai Tamkun
 

and various helpful Bücherei Members!

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Questions? Contact Jasmin at

kleinekinderbuecherei@gmail.com

Please share this news anyone who would enjoy reading German!
 

Thank you!

Family Friendly
Celebrate St. Martinstag in November of every Year
and Learn about the Legend of St. Martin
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Monday, November 11, 2024

" There is a traditional German custom that has a few things in common with Halloween: Martinstag (St. Martin’s Day, Martinsmas). Although they are very different celebrations, the Catholic Martinstag observance on 11 November of every year includes costumes and a lantern procession for children. Also known as Martini (from the Latin Festum Sancti Martini) in Austria and Bavaria, the feast day of Martin of Tours is celebrated in many parts of Europe, including even some Protestant regions. According to legend, Martin cut his red cloak in half to share with a beggar during a snowstorm. The traditional roasted goose (Martinsgans) meal on Martinstag is based on another part of the legend. Feeling unworthy of becoming a bishop, Martin hid in a stable filled with geese. The noise made by the geese betrayed his location, and the people of Tours had him consecrated as a bishop. ​ In parts of Austria, Germany, and Switzerland the Martinstag observance is a children’s affair. Carrying paper, candle-lit lanterns they have made, the young children take part in an evening procession, sometimes led by a rider on a white horse, emulating St. Martin and his red cloak. In some places the lantern procession ends with a Martinsfeuer (St. Martin bonfire). Depending on the region, at the end of the lantern procession, the children are rewarded with a cookie called a “Weckmann” (Rhineland) or a “Stutenkerl” (Westphalia). In some regions the children go door to door and sing for candy, fruit, or cookies. This is called “Martinssingen” or “Martinisingen.” In this way, the custom is very similar to Halloween’s trick-or-treat." On Friday, November 11th children, their parents, grandparents, and other family are welcome to participate in our little lantern procession through the neighborhood, followed by after dinner refreshments and a social time around a fire with refreshments. We will be baking Weckmänner and enjoying Tee and Glühwein. RSVP to join this event.

FILM ABEND
7 Zwerge- Männer Allein Im Wald
7 Dwarves- Men Alone In The Woods
7 Zwerge Poster High Res xl_382295_4aafc
August 24, 2024.
Potluck 5:15 
Movie 6:30 PM

Movie in German with English Subtitles

Dinner: Arrive at 5:15 PM if you’d like to share a potluck meal featuring German dishes and other favorite foods before the movie. 

Description:
7 Dwarves – Men Alone In the Woods (German: 7 Zwerge – Männer allein im Wald) is a German comedy film, created in 2004 by Otto Waalkes, loosely based on the story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, while also containing parodies of many other fairy tales by the Brothers Grimm.
Plot (short):
Seven dwarves live in a female-free-zone of the enchanted forest, until they find Snow White sleeping in one of their beds. After the queen kidnaps Snow White, it's up to the dwarves to rescue her.

Starring:
Nina Hagen, her daughter Cosma Shiva, Otto Waalkes, Mirco Nontschew, Boris Aljinovic, and many more.

​​

Family Friendly
Zwergenmusik
Children's Musik Group
Every Monday
4:30pm to 5:15pm

Musik, Singen, Instrumente, Finger und Bewegungsspiele, Tanz und kleine Basteleien erwarten euch Montags mit Tatjana. Bitte kontaktiert tatjanak.music@gmail.com um mitzumachen. 
Sliding scale $15-20/ pro Familie

FILM ABEND
100 Dinge
100 Things
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In Berlin schließen die besten Freunde und Geschäftspartner Toni und Paul eine Wette ab, in der sie für 100 Tage alle ihre Besitztümer aufgeben und jeden Tag nur einen Gegenstand zurücknehmen. Diese Komödie/Drama über zeitgenössischen Materialismus, Freundschaft, Beziehungen und die Suche nach den wirklich wichtigen Dingen im Leben ist lustig, regt zum Nachdenken an, und ist berührend und aufbauend.

Anschließend gibt es Zeit, über den Film und die Dinge zu sprechen, die wir brauchen, um glücklich zu sein.

 

In Berlin, best friends and business partners Toni and Paul make a bet to relinquish all of their possessions for 100 days, taking back only one item each day. This comedy/drama about contemporary materialism, friendship, relationships, and the quest for the truly important things in life is funny, thought provoking, touching and uplifting.

Afterward, there will be time to talk about the film and what things we need to be happy.

May 25th, 2024. 7:00 PM
Movie in German with English Subtitles
PROJECT DAY 2024
Saturday, April 27, 2024

 What a fun and productive happening!

DANKE to the 32 members who participated and accomplished so many tasks: Alex Loelhoeffel and Meg Sandow cleaned out and painted inside of shed. Andre Anukin and Simon Ried painted our storage room walls and ceiling white Chris Dieseldorff & Curt Patrick painted the ADA bathroom entry wall, the hall wall around door, and the trim work. Ninne Loelhoeffel repurposed wood and repaired the shed door and also removed the back wall of the wooden fence to open up the area for a future biergarten with Martin Hempel. Tina Doyle, Torsten Erhardt, Angelika Frebert, Guenter Vorlop, Randolf & Annette von Oepen cut back the huge wall of oleander. Dave Mayfield, Sabine Prather and Kai Tamkun weeded around building and parking lot. Chuck Elvert, Drew Achabal and Erik Claus sanded and stained our four beer barrels. Jim Neff repaired the sagging ceiling by stage, filled holes with asphalt by the entryway, and installed a new light in the storage room. Erika Reid, her mother, who was visiting, donated pizza and breakfast pastries, prepared and served lunch with Andrea Konrad and cleaned the kitchen. Rene Netter and Marcus Melander helped with table and pop up tent set up for lunch and take down. Kyunghee Chung, her daughter Hannah, and Undine Hempel helped with clean up Clark Magruder help set up for Project Day, ran errands for tools needed, & stepped in as needed with various projects. Jasmin Gerer organized our day, sent out the Sign Up Genius, purchased repair and painting supplies and lunch food, cooked chili & muffins and cleaned hall the following day. So many hands and efforts have greatly improved our hall and made the outside area look new and cared for. Vielen Dank!!!

 Hugo Wolf Lieder Concert
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Our Hugo Wolf Lieder Concert  is postponed, but not canceled. 
Aufgeschoben ist nicht aufgehoben!  

Our much awaited  concert on June 29th must be postponed because our esteemed pianist, Michelle Singher has sustained a shoulder injury.

The German Cultural Center of Santa Cruz
is excited to welcome

 
Jörg Reddin, Kapellmeister von Arnstadt
and 
Vlada Volkova-Moran concert pianist
Saturday, February 17, 2024. 3:30pm
Purchase tickets in advance at: 

This special event is co-sponsored by the Santa Cruz Baroque Festival,for which Herr Reddin is artist in residence for their51st Season: Legacies  www.scbaroque.org

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For a Reception and Musical Matinée

 “From Bach to Beethoven”

Herr Reddin will give an engaging talk interspersed with singing his favorite Lieder,

together with pianist Vlada Volkova-Moran 

In his role as  Kantor of the Protestant Churches in Arnstadt, Jörg plays on the same organ as his predecessor Johann Sebastian Bach several centuries earlier. A respected speaker, educator and performer, he won the first prize at the International Organ Competition of the Hanseatic cities in Elburg in the Netherlands. During his studies in Hamburg, he founded the  Kammerchor Cantus Hamburg and was its first director. An accomplished bass-baritone himself, he conducted the chamber choir in the projects of Michaelisoratorium by Carl Adoph  Kuntzen and Weihnachtsoratorium by Camille Saint-Saëns. An Erasmus scholarship took him to Vienna in October 2001. There he studied organ with University Professor Michael Radulescu at the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst. In 2013, he was appointed Kantor of the Protestant Churches in Arnstadt and was recently honored by the city of Arnstadt for his contributions to the city's cultural life.

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Vlada Volkova-Moran's career as concert pianist, organist and teacher spans  two continents, and we are indeed fortunate that she is a member of the Santa Cruz  community after having moved to the United States in 1998. Vlada has a large piano studio in Santa Cruz and teaches organ privately.  She is an active member of the American Guild of Organists and the Music Teachers Association of California, works as an organist at Peace United Church of Christ, serves as the main organist for the Diocesan Choir of Monterey, and the principal accompanist for Temple Beth El Choir. 

Sunday, Nov 5, 2023

Brahms & Haydn Quartet We are happy to announce that in addition to the concerts that we produce, musicians in Santa Cruz are  offering concerts and hosting recitals in our hall. Here is one such concert, performed by Ensemble Santa Cruz, coming up Sunday Nov 5th .See details on the flyer above.​

BRAHMS & HAYDN QUARTET
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Oktoberfest!

Unser Fest war ein riesen Hit und es haben so viele mitgeholfen, um es zu gestalten!

Es braucht tolle Zusammenarbeit um ein Essen und Fest  für 120 Personen auszurichten und die hatten wir dank so wundervoller Hilfe.

Our Oktoberfest was a huge hit and we are so appreciative of the many volunteers that helped make it happen!

Making a meal and setting up a Fest for 120 people takes great teamwork and we had that thanks to tremendous help from volunteers.
 

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Oktoberfest Oktober 2023
CELLOS BY THE SEA
Saturday, May 2023

Vielen Dank to member Judy Roberts, who leads the group and to the 10 cellists for performing a wonderful concert with 10 cellos for us!Thank you also to the musicians and some of our members for providing lovely refreshments which were enjoyed by an audience of circa 70 people.

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PROJECT DAY April 2023
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​​​​Was für ein toller Tag! What a great day! A HUGE THANK YOU to all who came to help and are still helping to support our Hall! As most of you know, maintaining and upgrading our Hall, built in 1959, is no easy feat. We are grateful that 28 members came to help and are still helping to continue finishing our projects. We got so much done:         – painted stripes on the parking lot         – remodeled one of the bathrooms                           – cleaned out shed and chairs         – did landscaping         – shared camaraderie                           – enjoyed a scrumptious Spätzle, soup and salad lunch ​ ​ ​ ​

Haydn/Schulhoff
Armenian Folk Musik Concert
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To learn more about Schulhoff's life and career as a 20th century Austrian-Jewish composer, we recommend viewing the following documentary:

Erwin Schulhoff’s Early Life and Music: Tradition Meets Dada on you tube.

Saturday, Feb 25, 2023

The German Cultural Center was excited to present a Haydn/Schulhoff/Armenian folk music string quartet concert played by wonderful musicians: Irene Herrmann, Samantha Bounkeua, Shannon Delaney D’Antonio, and Benjamin Bregman.
This concert consisted of music and stories about the composers.

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Klezmer Concert with Jake Shulman-Ment
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April 23, 2022. 7:00 PM

Born in New York City, Jake Shulman-Ment is among the most highly regarded KLEZMER musicians performing today.
He tours and records internationally as a soloist as well as with other musicians.

In this special performance, he will present traditional Jewish melodies, his own original compositions, and Yiddish songs which originated from shared roots in German medieval folk music.

KLEZMER is traditional eastern European Jewish Wedding music which became popular in New York in the late 1800s–early 1900s and is now played not only at weddings.
There are many different branches of Klezmer. Some sound similar to Romanian music. Some of it is sung in Yiddish, a Germanic language and a branch of the Indo-European language family. In Germany after the Holocaust, Klezmer has had a revival as music which was not co-opted by the Nazis and to protest Nazi philosophy and crimes.

The German Cultural Center has noticed that in the recent decade a number of people in the US, and here in Santa Cruz, whose families had to leave Germany during the Holocaust have become German Citizens. Hosting this concert is the Center's way to pay a tribute to Klezmer, welcome people to the German Cultural Center, and have fun together.

The German Cultural Center is proud to announce Jake Shulman-Ment.

Annual Membership Meeting
Membership Meeting Announcement .png
Celebrate St. Martinstag in November of every Year
and Learn about the Legend of St. Martin
Sankt Martins.jpeg

" There is a traditional German custom that has a few things in common with Halloween: Martinstag (St. Martin’s Day, Martinsmas). Although they are very different celebrations, the Catholic Martinstag observance on 11 November of every year includes costumes and a lantern procession for children. Also known as Martini (from the Latin Festum Sancti Martini) in Austria and Bavaria, the feast day of Martin of Tours is celebrated in many parts of Europe, including even some Protestant regions. According to legend, Martin cut his red cloak in half to share with a beggar during a snowstorm. The traditional roasted goose (Martinsgans) meal on Martinstag is based on another part of the legend. Feeling unworthy of becoming a bishop, Martin hid in a stable filled with geese. The noise made by the geese betrayed his location, and the people of Tours had him consecrated as a bishop. ​ In parts of Austria, Germany, and Switzerland the Martinstag observance is a children’s affair. Carrying paper, candle-lit lanterns they have made, the young children take part in an evening procession, sometimes led by a rider on a white horse, emulating St. Martin and his red cloak. In some places the lantern procession ends with a Martinsfeuer (St. Martin bonfire). Depending on the region, at the end of the lantern procession, the children are rewarded with a cookie called a “Weckmann” (Rhineland) or a “Stutenkerl” (Westphalia). In some regions the children go door to door and sing for candy, fruit, or cookies. This is called “Martinssingen” or “Martinisingen.” In this way, the custom is very similar to Halloween’s trick-or-treat." On Friday, November 11th children, their parents, grandparents, and other family are welcome to participate in our little lantern procession through the neighborhood, followed by after dinner refreshments and a social time around a fire with refreshments. We will be baking Weckmänner and enjoying Tee and Glühwein. RSVP to join this event.

Konzert: Schubertiade with Bariton Hans Grunwald
Schubert Konzert Hans Grunwald 2022_edit
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April 23, 2022. 7:00 PM

Bariton Hans Grunwald wurde für seine Leistungen im Bereich des deutschen Liedgesangs zum „Schubert Fellow“ ernannt nachdem er am Songfest Young Artist Program am San Francisco Conservatory teilnahm. Wir freuen uns dass er einige seiner deutschen Lieblingslieder, darunter Lieder von Schubert, Beethoven, Schumann für Gesang und Klavier, mit uns geteilt hat.

Baritone Hans Grunwald was named a "Schubert Fellow" for his accomplishments in the area of German Lieder performance after he took part in the Songfest Young Artist program at the San Francisco Conservatory. We are delighted that he shared some of his favorite German Lieder with us, including songs of Schubert, Beethoven, Schumann for voice and piano.

BRAHMS & HAYDN QUARTET

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