Deutsche Gesellschaft estab. 1847 -- Deutsches Haus inc. 1928

GHFA 17^th Annual Oktoberfest Parade

Don’t forget to watch and enjoy New Orleans’ only Oktoberfest Parade, sponsored by the German Heritage Festival Association, on Sunday, October 5^th, starting at 1 p.m. at Convention Center Blvd. and ending at the Deutsches Haus on South Galvez. A map of the parade route follows.

The seventeenth Oktoberfest Parade Grand Marshall is five-star Chef and Proprietor of Broussard’s Restaurant, Gunter Karl Preuss and parade Princess and Prince are Heather Olivier and Stephen Dargis, she an honor student and star tennis player at Archbishop Chapelle High School and he an athlete from Archbishop Rummel High School. Preceding the parade, a religious service at 10:30 a.m. on the 2^nd floor of Deutsches Haus will be led by Pastor Heinz R. Neumann of St. Matthaeus Unierte Kirche and is open to all.

And don’t forget the After-Parade-Party at Deutsches Haus at 3 p.m. including music by Rocky’s Hot Fox Trot Orchestra plus a German dinner and an outstanding variety of German beers. Admission is $20.00 per person and tickets must be purchased in advance from Keith Oldendorf or from the Deutsches Haus Steward.

Oktoberfest Parade Map

Grand Marshall
Gunter Karl Preuss, AAC

Majors Dante Corradi  & Teddy Byrd with
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld in Babylon, September 6, 2

Thanks to Herb and Pat Hille for sharing the experiences of their son-in-law Major Dante Corradi with Monatsblatt. Dante, who supervises regional groups of Reserve Units and was assigned to first the Italian and then the Polish forces, was shipped to Iraq and stationed in Babylon one week before the birth of the Hille’s grandson in North Carolina. His wife, the Hille’s daughter Robin, is a lieutenant in the Reserves. He and his fellow officers have put together an impressive group of photos of the ruins of the famed palace of Nebuchadnezzar, including the ruins “rebuilt” by Saddam Hussein within view of his new palace to point out his “kinship” with the historic Emperor. They also have humorous and touching pictures of kids in the orphanage adopted by Dante’s unit. If you would like to see these photos which are so unlike those we see in the media, Email them at herb@rtconline.com.

Who Dat?



Hint: This beautiful baby grew up to be Santa’s pal and the Easter Bunny’s best friend, a member of the Ladies’ Auxiliary, a member of the Board of Deutsches Haus, and a tireless supporter of Deutsches Haus and all its activities.

Unsere Zukünftigen Mitglieder
Our Future Members

Natalia, 6 years old, who lives in Sweden, and Tristan, 2 years old, of Harahan, LA, adored grandchildren of Jules and Birgitta Lauritzen, who are “The Best Grandchildren in the WORLD!!”

Who Dat?

Have you guessed yet?  It’s Margaret Ingram, whose organizational abilities and sense of fun assure the Haus of happy Christmas and Easter celebrations for all our families! Thanks, Margaret, for your imagination and dedication.

The Chicken Dance
by Stewart Eastman Part 1

When the clarinet squeals the opening notes to signal the next Chicken Dance, children will run to the dance floor delighted, and adults will accompany them smiling. But a few Teutonic Grinches will grumble that it is not a proper Oktoberfest tune. After many hours of painstaking research, I can explain why it really is an Oktoberfest tune, how it came to be so, and why it should remain one.

The Chicken Dance originally came from Switzerland, not Germany! Oktoberfest in America is a celebration of the heritage and culture of German speaking peoples. Songs and dances from Austria, Switzerland and even tiny Liechtenstein are widespread and entirely appropriate. Moreover, the dance first became wildly popular in Germany, and was played and danced at the Munich Oktoberfest. It was there that American musicians learned the tune and brought it home.                            

The Swiss accordionist Werner Thomas composed the Chicken Dance. Although he began playing it sometime in the 1950's in the Swiss ski resort town of Davos, it was not published until 1973, when a visiting Belgian music publisher discovered it. As an instrumental piece, it did not have lyrics and there was never a settled name for it. The first name was “Tchip Tchip”, and the first published name was “Dance Little Bird”. It languished for several years.

Suddenly it took Europe by storm. An obscure quartet called De Electronica’s  recorded the single “De Vogeljes Dans” (“The Little Bird’s Dance” in Dutch)  in 1980 and it soared onto the Dutch pop charts. The following year under the name “Dance Little Bird” the Electronica’s version of the Chicken Dance became the hit tune on German radio. From July through October 1981 the Chicken Dance was in the top ten on German pop charts; for 8 weeks it was the number one hit! “Dance Little Bird” swept Germany that year, before and during Oktoberfest.

Every year many Americans make a pilgrimage to Munich to enjoy the original Oktoberfest. In 1981, visiting Americans, including a number of polka accordionists and other musicians, witnessed tents full of Germans doing the Chicken Dance on the tables at Oktoberfest. It would be hard to verify who was the first to bring the Chicken Dance to America. One of the musicians was Marv Herzog of the Bavaria band from Michigan and another was Hank Holler from Ohio. Al Tuszkoski, a bandleader from Wilkes Barre Pennsylvania who performs as Jolly Joe and the Bavarians not only heard the tune but claims to have been the first to record it in the States.

Meanwhile, the Heilbronn Band from Germany introduced the dance at the Tulsa, Oklahoma Oktoberfest, where, legend has it, it acquired the name “Chicken Dance”. The Dutch and German records had covers featuring cartoon ducklings, and in Germany the name became “Der Ententanz”, or “Duck Dance”. In other lands where the Queen’s English is spoken, such as Britain, Australia and India, the tune became known as “The Birdie Dance”, because of a chart-hitting version by “The Tweets”, an English group that performed in bird costumes and sold 8 million copies of its recording. At Oktoberfest in Tulsa, the band wanted a dancer in full costume. No duck costume could be found, but a chicken outfit was available at a local TV station. Voila! “The Chicken Dance” became its title in America.

In Europe, the Chicken Dance was considered a disco or electronica pop tune. Artists in many countries composed lyrics in their local language, such as songstress Romina Power in her record “Il Ballo Di Qua Qua”, number one on the Italian hit parade in 1981. Maria Jesus and his Accordion recorded “Los Pajaritos” for the Spanish speaking world. Even in the Soviet Union, the tune was adapted in painful excess.

            The Chicken Dance is featured in three principal locales: weddings, sports events, such as college and minor league games, and above all at Oktoberfests. A survey of both DJ’s and small-scale live bands shows that it is one of the most popular selections at weddings in both America and Britain. And, perhaps because it requires light-hearted audience participation, it seems to fit right in at such venues as Zephyrs’ stadium and LSU football games. 

            A Chicken Dance attracts a good portion of an Oktoberfest crowd to the dance floor. This often consists of one or two rings of dancers, sometimes with one ring inside another. The Guinness World Record’s largest Chicken Dance for a time was at the Cincinnati Oktoberfest in 1994 when no less than 48,000 people participated in a vast dance at Fountain Square. In 1996, a county fair in Canfield Ohio smashed that record with 72,000 fairgoers participating. The Chicken Dance is usually a fairly short dance. Although there is no official record, the Polishtown USA festival in Santa Monica California reached 25 minutes in 1997. [Part 2 follows in a future issue of Monatsblatt]

Damenchor

            The Deutsches Haus Damenchor is celebrating its 20th year. Founded on July 22, 1983, it now has 25 members who sing and rehearse on the first and third Fridays of each month, except during Oktoberfest. Damenchor specializes in singing German lieder, which helps non-German speakers to learn the language. Members sing at the Nordamericanischer Sangerbund Saengerfest every three years, an impressive festival with more than a thousand singers taking part. The next Saengerfest is in Peoria, Illinois in May 2003. Singers must be Damenchor members for at least six months prior to the Saengerfest to participate and must be 18 years of age or older. Damenchor also performs for local events. Our conductor, Lyndall Rossbach, was formerly a teacher of music in the N.O. Public Schools, did graduate work in conducting and has conducted the Louisiana symphony in a performance with the St. Louis Cathedral Choir.

            Altos and second sopranos are invited to join us at our next rehearsal at the Haus on 7:30 p.m. Friday November 3, 2003. Deutsches Haus membership is not required to join Damenchor. If you are interested and want more information, call Juanita Landau, Secretary, at 427-2087 or Florence Jones, President, at 899-2617.

The Ladies’ Auxiliary

            The membership of the Ladies’ Auxiliary invites all women associated with Deutsches Haus, whether as members or wives of members, to attend their monthly meetings at Deutsches Haus on the second Friday of every month (except during Oktoberfest and the month of July) at 8:00 p.m.. The primary purpose of the Auxiliary is to support Haus activities, and, of course, to enjoy each other along the way. Last month we gave our annual wine and cheese party to honor Haus officers and our membership and the month prior to that, we offered Cajun dancing lessons. The Auxiliary also sponsors the annual Haus family Christmas and Easter celebrations.

            Our major source of funds is bake sales during Oktoberfest and for other Haus functions throughout the year. The Auxiliary welcomes donations of cakes during Oktoberfest weekends. Volunteers are also needed to sell cakes. For more information call Trudy Burkhart at 943-1588.

Unter der Linden

The Arts Council of New Orleans presents Under the Linden Tree, Music of the German Minnesingers, Sunday, October 6^th at 4:00 P.m. at Ursuline Chapel, 2635 State St,, Friday, October 11^th at 8:00 p.m. at St. John Lutheran Church, 3937 Canal St., and Sunday October 13^th at 3:00 p.m. at Holy Name of Mary Church, 500 Eliza St. in Algiers. All concerts are free and open to the public. Call 865-8203 for further information.
 

To Our Arbeitstag (Work Party) Volunteers September 13, 2002

Joe Stephany, Jr., Tommy Mertz, James Tregler, Dominic Verdi, Joy Seeger, Al Seeger,
Robert Hymel, Stewart Eastman, Larry Decuers, Ty Sisung, James Reiter,
Lila Beyer, Ernest Beyer, Jules Lauritzen, David Gatto, Charlie Roma, Brian Solathe,
Heinz Kloth, Phyllis Lesage, George Lesage, Randy Roth, Mark Crusto, Mary Vernoy,
Mary Widmann, Henry Widmann, Jason Bourgois, Julie Bourgois, Brigitte Gunn, Bill Gunn,
Anna Whitely, Pat Hille, Herb Hille, Karla Schaubhut, Lido Schaubhut,
Trudy Burkhart, Gail Perry, Joan Hughes, Tom Shinn, Michon Shinn, Beth Hall

To Our Volunteer Chefs September, 2002

Mary Widmann, Kevin Stolzenthaler, James Tregler, Michael Poissenot,
 Ursula Jackson, Brigitte Gunn, Bill Gunn, Barbara Fineberg, Julie Bourgeois, Marietta Herr,
Ellen Hall, Rachel Hall Ricks, Herbert Hille, Margareta Mitchell

To Our Oktoberfest Volunteers Friday, September 26, 2003

Virginia Reidl, Robert Hymel, Bill Gunn, Brigitte Gunn, Eddie Delagrange, Karlheinz von Bargen,
Renee Hymel, Mary Vernoy, Florence Jones, Jason Bourgeois, Kevin Stolzenthaler, Wilford Hill,
Margareta Mitchell, Julie Bourgeois, Anna Whitely, Ralph Mipro, Thomas Shinn,
Barbara Fineberg, Gail Perry, Adelina Oliva, Yvonne Lutenbacher, Jules Lauritzen, Brigitta Lauritzen,
Henry Schorr, Ray Hoffman, Uta Zimmermann, Bernard Eble, Christy Bein

To Our Oktoberfest Volunteers Saturday, September 27, 2003

Brian Salathe, Bill Gunn, Eddie Delagrange, Karlheinz von Bargen, Gail Perry, Mary Vernoy,
Barbara Winfield, Karla Schaubhut, Richard Kuntz, Ralph Mipro, Barbara Fineberg, Thomas Shinn,
Adelina Oliva, Mary Widmann, Chris Christian, George Lesage, Florence Jones, Karl Stier,
Brigitte Gunn, Ursula Jackson, Uta Zimmermann, Tommy Mertz, Harry Widmann, Herb Hille,
Pat Hille, Michon Shinn, Anna Whitely, April Robinson, Joe Stephany, Keith Oldendorf,
Ernest Beyer, Lila Beyer, James Tregler, Joe Kueck, Eddie Delagrange III, Charles Rome, Dominic Verdi, Peter Griffiths, Herbert Vahrenhorst, Phyllis Lesage, Ty Sisung, Margareta Mitchell,
Stewart Eastman, Scott Whitley, Jason Bougeois, Brother Hill, Bob Zimmer, Michael Poissenot

Fourth Annual German Festival at Germania Lodge #46

Looking for more Oktoberfest fun? Want more um-pa-pa music and German wine and beer?  Did you work (or party) so hard at Oktoberfest that you need to unwind, dance and, listen to German music and let somebody else do the work?  Then join Germania Lodge #46 at Germanfest on November 8^th from 6:30 to 10:00 p.m.  Admission is $20.00 and entitles you to food, beverages, and entertainment from Prost and you know how great they are! Food will be served at 6:30 p.m., band 7:00 p.m. till 10:00 p.m.  Proceeds will go to Germania Lodge’s building fund, so please come on out and have some fun for a worthy cause.  For tickets contact Eddie Bopp at 271-6242 or Joe Kueck at 737-6767.

Winterfest

Mark your calendar for the annual Winterfest, sponsored by the Crescent City Homebrew Club, Saturday, Nov. 15^th at Deutsches Haus at 6:00 p.m. until 11:00 p.m. Beverages, food, music and fun are included with admission. Tickets are $25.00 in advance or $30.00 at the door and are available from any CCHC member or contact Richard Cuccia (504) 454-3847 or richardcuccia@hotmail.com.  

German Heritage Festival Association

Oktoberfest Parade
Sunday, Oct 5^th

Leaves Convention Center Blvd & Julia
(see Enclosed Map and details within)

At 1:00 P.M.

Can’t March?

Be an enthusiastic Spectator and then Participate in the
Post Parade Celebration at the Haus

Tickets are $20.00 and must be purchased in advance

From Keith Oldendorf or

The Haus Steward

We need your E-mail address.  Please send an E-mail to e-mail: deutscheshaus@cox.net

Ein herzliches Willkommen! zu unseren neuen Mitglieder.

(Welcome To Our New Members)

In September
Associate:
Sergio Cabrera
Student:
Michael Weilbaecher

(Welcome To Our New Members)

The Haus Calendar

Haus members, especially club officers, are invited to submit items for the calendar by writing them in the calendar kept by the Haus steward behind the bar, by giving them to a member of the Monatsblatt staff, or by e-mailing it to deutscheshaus@cox.net Please note that the Monatsblatt staff is always eager to promote events but we do need your information in order to do so, particularly if a date is changed or rescheduled. PLEASE KEEP IN MIND OUR DEADLINES FOR ADS & ANNOUNCEMENTS WHEN SUBMITTING ITEMS FOR THE CALENDAR.

Haus Steward: James Copeland

Monatsblatt

Issued monthly & bi-monthly
 by Deutsches Haus

Claus Sadlier, Editor Emeritus
Barbara Fineberg, Executive Editor
fineberg@bellsouth.net
Tommy Mertz, Assistant Editor
Laura Querens, Contributing Editor
Col. Richard A. Kuntz, AUS (Ret), Contributor
Stewart Eastman, Photographer
Thomas C. Mertz, Webmeister, Mailing List
Anna Whitely, Mailing Coordinator

OKTOBER  DEADLINE:

For ads, articles and announcements: Monday, Oktober 20^th

 

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