This week has been very busy for me. Monday we arrived in Frankfurt, Germany and took a short train ride to Bonn where my uncle picked us up. It was quite a hassle because my grandma and I had many bags; we had one suitcase full of antiques specifically for my uncle (he restores antiques). On Tuesday I walked around downtown Bonn with my grandma and uncle. The weather was very warm and the sun was out the whole time, something that is not very common here. The climate is quite similar to Washington in that it is cold, rainy, and grey most of the time so the people get really excited when the sun is out. I saw multiple street performers, one was playing the marimba. We visited the Bonn Minster (Bonner Münster in German), a Roman Catholic church that was built between the 11th and 13th century, making it one of Germany’s oldest churches. Beethoven played the church organ there as a young boy. It is probably the biggest church organ I have ever seen in person. According to legends Saints Cassius and Florentius (the patron saints of Bonn) were beheaded for their religious beliefs on the spot where the church stands. There are statues of two heads in front of the church representing them.
We went by the Bonn tourism office and got a map of Bonn and also a map of where Beethoven had been around Bonn. While in the tourist office I saw a picture of the Bonn Symphony Orchestra on the wall with my uncle featured on the left.
We visited the house that Beethoven was born in, which is the main attraction that brings people to Bonn. Inside the house are manuscripts and letters written by Beethoven. While walking through the house I felt as though I was being transported back through time. The floors creaked with every step we took and we were told to leave our cameras behind so I wasn’t able to take photos inside. The house features the first viola Beethoven owned, his death masks, his ear cones that he used to try to get back his hearing at the end of his life (which didn’t work unfortunately), and many other possessions owned by the legendary composer. Images of Beethoven are literally all over the city from the obvious (the Beethoven haus) to statues of him in the city square, delis, on chocolates, and inside the banks. After talking to numerous locals, I realized that the Bonn Symphony Orchestra still remains in Bonn because of Beethoven. Bonn used to the be capital of Germany and since the capital switched to Berlin, there’s really no point in Bonn having such a prestigious orchestra. It’s all because Beethoven was born in Bonn that makes this city have such an important musical cultural significance.
During the weekend we went to see two operas at the Operhaus Bonn. I noticed that most of the crowd were older people (something our classmates observed at the opera that they attended in Seattle). My uncle played trumpet during both operas (and every other opera that is performed there). On Friday night we went to see a 4 hour opera, The Tales of Hoffmann, which was performed in French and subtitled in German. It was a bit confusing to follow since none of it was in English. I researched it before going to watch but still couldn’t follow the premise. At first it seemed like we were watching parts out of Frankenstein or Beetlejuice because of the dramatic face paint and steam punk costumes. Everyone’s hair was white and tinged neon green. Even with minimal knowledge of what was going on, I could still appreciate the instrumentation, beautiful costumes, set design, and wonderful music. I did feel a little disoriented after because of so many languages being projected at me (French being sung, German on the screen). After the opera I went home and read up on “The Tales of Hoffmann” and it made more sense. I would like to watch it again in English.
On Saturday night we went to see another opera, Fidelio, which was the only opera Beethoven ever wrote. Since I was so confused by The Tales of Hoffmann, I spent an hour reading about it before going. It really helped and I was moved by the story and love how Beethoven took a political message and put it into music. This opera was only 2 hours long. I feel extremely lucky that I was able to watch my uncle play in an opera by Beethoven in the city of his birth and in the language it was composed in.
my sketch of a building in Bonn that I sat across from drinking tea during the afternoon and people watched. It looks very old but is situated among modern businesses like Starbucks.
