Ralf Gawlick, German composer and professor at Boston College, contacted us to let us know about the screening of a new documentary about the Berlin Wall on Sunday, October 11 at 4.30pm at the Museum of Fine Arts in the Remis Auditorium. Gawlick composed the music for this film that commemorates the Berlin Wall on the eve of the 20th anniversary of its fall. Click here to view the announcement of the documentary.

The German Consulate General Boston asked us to share the invitation to the "The Bundestagswahl 2009 Election Party" with our school community. Pre-registration for this event, which will take place on Sunday, September 27, from 11.30a.m. to 4p.m. at the JFK Jr. Forum at the Kennedy School of Government  in Cambridge, is required.

Our friends at the BSV forwarded this flyer to us: Learn ballroom dancing! The class was offered for the first time last spring and a huge succcess, so it's on the schedule again for this fall. There will be an introductory class on Wednesday, October 7 at 7pm in the big ballroom at the Boylston Schul-Verein. Contact Daniel Koch if you are interested or would like to know more about this.

The Goethe-Institut's Language Department announced the addition of a second summer session of "Beginning German" which will run from July 27 to August 27. They will also offer a 4-week A1 (2) course for those who completed the A1 (1) class. Here's a list of the full Session II schedule (or visit the Goethe-Institut's Web site for information and registration):
 

The Boylston Schul-Verein (BSV), our parent organization, is looking for help cleaning up the property and getting ready for all the great spring and summer programs. Any help would be greatly appreciated - just show up between 9AM and 3PM on Saturday, May 9th. You can find directions to the BSV location in Walpole here.

Lovers of German baroque music might be interested in a series of concerts by the local choir "Convivium Musicum" which are performed on three different occasions in May. The concerts feature music sung in German by composers Hassler, Praetorius and Schütz. For more information on dates and locations, visit Convivium Musicum's Web site.

Mark your calendars for the Boylston Schul-Verein's big Sommerfest on Saturday, June 13 (noon to 11PM) and Sunday (noon to 6PM)! The annual event which draws hundreds of people every year features lives music each day beginning at 1PM and kid entertainment from 2PM to 4PM. Needless to say, there'll be plenty of German food, drink and "Gemütlichkeit"! Check the BSV's web site for more info and directions to Walpole.

Here's a list of summer camps and classes that involve learning or using the German language! We have updated a few listings as we have received more information: 

Coolidge Corner Theater on Harvard Street in Brookline is screening "Nacht vor Augen" ("Hero's Welcome", Germany 2008) on Sunday, April 19 at 11AM in German with English subtitles as part of their World Cinema Series. The May movie will be "Finnischer Tango" ("Finnish Tango", Germany, 2008) to be seen on May 17 at 11AM. To read more about these movies, view Coolidge Corner's Web site.

We received this information about an event hosted by the Goethe Society of New England:
"Alexandra Haueisen will give a power-point presentation covering her research on German immigrants in 19th century Boston.  This presentation is based on her recently completed doctoral thesis that she successfully defended at Georg-August-Universität in Göttingen. Her thesis has been published under the title Das Bostoner Intelligenz-Blatt: Kulturgeschichte der deutschen Immigration in Boston im 19. Jahrhundert – zur Biographie einer deutschen Kolonie. Ms Haueisen was born in Bavaria and now resides with her family in Cambridge. The presentation, in English, will take place on Sunday, March 22, 2:00pm at the Goethe Society of New England which meets at the Goethe-Institut Boston, 170 Beacon Street. Refreshments will be served. There is a guest fee of $10 ($5.00 for students).To RSVP or for additional information, please call Michael Hager at 617-723-7133."