May, 2004 - Nr. 5
Dick reports...
Choirs Galore
…at the Danube-Swabian Club. Wonderful choirs and powerful voices got together for an evening of fun and spirited entertainment, hosted by the German Harmonie Choir.
After
a welcoming address by President Rosl Schwabe and a welcome song by all the
choirs, the Harmonie Choir, under the direction of Manfred Petz – who also
served as master of ceremonies – sang the first set of four spring-oriented
songs, followed by Alan Williams and the Hansa Choir, under Wolf Schepp,
with treasured old tunes.
Hilde Schulz plus Heide and Fred entertained with solo performances afterwards.
Then it was the Edelweiss Choir’s turn to take the stage, also under the direction of Manfred Petz, with three songs including a "Jodler" followed with a solo by Alan Wiliams.
Ingeborg
Scholz did a wonderful "Christl von der Post" (Vogelhändler) that garnered
rich applause
.
No less entertaining was Günther Rausch with his interpretation of one of
Carl Millöcker’s "Bettelstudent" solos (Ach ich hab’ sie ja nur…).
He
later in the evening teamed up with Ingeborg Scholz for a double act with "Komm
mit nach Varasdin" from C. Zeller’s ‘Gräfin Mariza’.
Then it was the turn of the Heidelberg-Rheingold Singers from St. Catherines under the direction of Lucille Vogel with four songs that included ‘Gory (sorry Glory) Halleluja’, with German text and an invitation for the audience to participate. Great presentation!
After the break the audience was invited to sing a number of songs before resuming the programmed activities with the Male Choir Harfentöne from Toronto, under the direction of Horst Hartmann, with their wonderfully strong voices.
Then
came another humorous interlude with Johanna – The Great Italian Diva
and
her loyal companion "Caruso Placido the 5th & ¾" – with ‘Il Barko’
("Il Bacchio").
To conclude this colourful evening the "Mass-Choir" took to the stage under the direction of M. Petz, W. Schepp and L. Vogel with three more renditions of well-loved melodies.
Kudos
also to the two wonderful pianists, Otti Bauer and Linda Marcinkus, who
accompanied the choirs when required.
A
great evening and sincerely appreciated by the audience that filled the
great hall.
Easter Fest at Downey’s
This
annual event at Downey’s Farm Market on Heart Lake Road in Brampton was
planned a week earlier this year and the weather could have been better.
Several days of rain did much to drench the ground, which made parking a bit
of a problem.
This
inclement weather may have discouraged some of the parents from visiting the
market place, this year. But then the wine boutique was open, offering all
of their Gold and Silver Medal ‘price-winning’ fruit wines for tasting and
eventually purchasing some for consumption during the Easter holidays.
But being a little muddy did not discourage the – mostly
rubber-booted - kids from going out into the wet field searching for their
share of plastic eggs and to then turn them in at the collection station
where they were exchanged for a small basket filled with chocolate eggs.
As
usual a big white rabbit was in attendance and provided a disarming photo
opportunity and chance of taking the memory of this event home for the
future. Many of the children took advantage of the "Face Painting" offered
in the Ice Cream Parlour by a couple of ‘bunnies’, and soon there were a
whole new bunch of ‘bunnies" running around, visiting all the other
kid-oriented amusement opportunities such as decorating eggs, puppet show,
hot chocolates and donuts, Steve
Baker’s
magic – on the first weekend – and the "Smudge Fundays" on the second
weekend - with better weather, wagon rides and other activities provided by
Ruth and John Downey, their family and staff.
The market opens again on April 26 and features Asparagus
and Rhubarb as this year’s earliest fresh ‘produce’ contributions to your
‘gourmet’ kitchen. For additional information visit Downey’s website at:
www.downeysfarm.on.ca and their
ads in this paper to stay well informed throughout the year.
Kinderfest at the Hansa Haus
This
was a wonderful and very colourful event, hosted by the Weiss-Blau Bayern
Junior Schuhplattler group. About 100 youngsters had shown up and about 70
of them participated in the mutual entertainment. (I counted 73 kids in the
‘Polonaise’ at the end of the afternoon).
S.T.V. Weiss-Blau Bayern
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The entertainment started with the very junior ‘Schuhplattler’ and some traditional dances.
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Followed by Shiamak Davar’s Indo-Jazz & Bollywood Dancers, complete with traditional Indian music and fantastic golden costumes that outshone anything else on the floor this afternoon.
The Loreley Youth Dancers
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The K.G. Loreley Dance Guard
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The Loreley Show Dance
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Next in line were the Loreley Youth Dancers, from Oshawa in their new black ‘Garde’ uniforms followed by their older peers who entertained with a traditional ‘Guard Dance’. Did I mention colourful, yet? They also performed a ‘Show dance’ later in the afternoon to a theme from the musical "Mama Mia", which is currently running in Toronto.
The Enzian Schuhplattler from Kitchener
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Irish Dancing
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The Enzian Schuhplattler Verein, Kitchener performed next and was followed by three young ladies – and one boy – from the Grant School of Irish Dancing. This was awesome! I have never seen feet move that fast on anyone – while the rest of the body was held rigidly still. I think it is needless to mention that they received roaring applause by the audience, not just for the wonderful costumes, but also essentially for these flawlessly executed performances.
The Croatian Parish Folklore Group "Marjan"
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The Croatian Parish Folklore Group "Marjan" – complete with their own live band – sang and performed traditional folk dances. The four musicians, a Base fiddle, two guitars and a small mandolin- that almost sounded like a Banjo, were a joy to listen to and greatly appreciated by the spectators.
The
Weiss-Blau Bayern Juniors concluded these series of wonderful performances.
Then came the part of the afternoon the kids had been patiently waiting for – especially those that had been here in previous years.
The Piñata!
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The
children were placed in a large circle on the floor with the Piñata hanging
in the centre overhead. Henry Lopez selected one of the youngsters, handed
out a long stick, blindfolded him or her and pointed the kid to the target.
This was repeated, alternating between boys and girls for quite some time
before finally one of them managed to strike the piñata and release some of
the candy therein. This resulted in a mad scramble over the floor. But since
this wasn’t the end of, it the game continued for quite a while yet with
every so often a few pieces of candy falling out starting the scramble
again. The kids just loved it. A final ‘coup de grace’ ended the first round
and the little ones made room for the juniors, who had the same trials and
tribulations. It really was great fun – but not just for the kids, the
adults enjoyed it at least as much as their offspring.
The Polonaise
The ‘Tombola’ raffle with almost 200 prices was one of the
largest I have seen in along time, always appreciated by the guests, and
always a great fund-raiser.
Kindertrachtenfest at the Danube-Swabians
All pictures were supplied by the Szauter Family.
We thank them for their support.
It was the 45th time that this occasion was staged by the "Donauschwaben" in a festive atmosphere. Sponsored by the Ladies Auxiliary the children were treated to hot dogs, juice and ice cream – some came back for ‘seconds’. Rachel Seilern – this year’s "Miss Donauschwaben" – and dance teachers Birgit Kahr, Anita Halverson, Heidi Müller and Carrie Turman accompanied the children when they marched into the hall, with Mike Nemeth providing the musical accompaniment.
The young ones sang a selection of German folk songs under the direction of Ingrid Szauter, accompanied by Rachel on the guitar.
After
an introduction by Birgit Kahr, Brigitte Wecker, the clubs president and
Mrs. Lena Forstner, president of the Ladies Auxiliary, welcomed the guests
and thanked the teachers for their efforts and the parents for bringing the
children to the club for dance rehearsals.
The
children in those wonderful "Trachten" (costumes) that originated in the old
country many years ago, performed a number of dances that they had been
practicing during the year – to the great delight of the audience.
Special
guests this year were the Kitchener ‘Schwaben’ Dancers and their teacher
Sheri Lotrijan, accompanied by Dieter Hanke, vice president of the club, and
his wife. Mrs. Kahr presented each of the children from Kitchener with a
lapel pin, from the Toronto ‘Kinder’ Group as a souvenir of this event.
The
raffle for the precious, traditionally costumed doll was won - to be shared
- by Melanie and Kirsten Hehn.
Let’s
face it, those children are not only Canada’s future but also the future of
the club itself and its survival. A fact that those involved should never
forget!
Kinder & Junior Manöverball in Kitchener
Unfortunately I couldn’t make it to Kitchener this year but I have the results anyway, for those that also missed it. First the "Kinder" category:
Originality - Blau-Weiss, Sarnia.
Show Dance – 1st place and ‘Wandertrophy’: Blau-Weiss, Sarnia / 2nd Narragonia, Brantford / 3rd Narrenzunft, Kitchener / 4th Narrhalla 58, Hamilton.
Tanzmariechen Solo – 1st place and ‘Wandertrophy’: Narragonia, Brantford / 2nd Blau-Weiss, Sarnia / 3rd Narrenzunft, Kitchener.
Garde Dance – and ‘Wandertrophy’: Narragonia, Brantford / 2nd Blau-Weiss, Sarnia / 3rd Narrenzunft, Kitchener / 4th Narrhalla 58, Hamilton.
Now the Juniors:
Originality – Blau-Weiss, Sarnia.
Show Dance – 1st place and Wandertrophy: Narragonia, Brantford /2nd Treuer Husar, Mississauga / 3rd Blau-Weiss, Sarnia / 4th Narrenzunft, Kitchener.
Tanzmariechen Solo – 1st place: Blau-Weiss, Sarnia / 2nd & 3rd – (tie) Treuer Husar, Mississauga & Narragonia, Brantford / 4th Narrenzunft, Kitchener.
Garde Dance – 1st place and Wandertrophy: Narragonia, Brantford / 2nd Treuer Husar, Mississauga / 3rd Blau-Weiss, Sarnia / 4th Narrenzunft, Kitchener.
Kudos to the girls! No comment necessary from me this time, but my sincerest thanks go out to my source, which sent me the results.
The next ‘Carneval’ event – out of the regular season this time - to look forward to, will be the first "Prinzenball", hosted by the BDKK at the Holiday Inn in Burlington, on the 15th of this month. Ex-Royals and reigning royals from all over were invited to attend, and entertainment will be arriving from Germany as well. Alaaf, Helau and Ahoi,
as always,
Dick Altermann
Comments to: dick@echoworld.com
