danigirl235

I am planning to take my 20-year old son to Germany in July/Aug 2009. He's interested mainly because of the beer, but he's also a jazz musican, and I'd like to consider that as I plan our trip. We will be coming from Paris, and I don't have a specific destination in Germany in mind just yet. It's our first time there, so I figured we'd stick to the obvious places, either Berlin or Munich. (Those are the obvious places, right? This is my first trip abroad as a single person, and in the past, I happily let ex and other traveling companions do the heavy lifting when it came to planning foreign travel.)

So I guess what I am requesting is suggestions and advice from jazz lovers who have been to Germany.

Thanks in advance

traveller1959

The obvious place would be Köln - which is, BTW, pretty close to Paris.

Berlin has, of course, the most jazz clubs of any German city.

I am currently doing some research but there is a kind of server breakdown and it is time to go to bed here.

Pleas wait 24 hours - I will give you more information on jazz in Germany.

On 3-5 July 2009, there will be a good festival at a fantastic location in Duisburg. See:
http://www.traumzeit-festival.de/

Germany's most significant jazz festival is in Moers, however on Pentecost.

Here is a list of jazz clubs. Click on the map:

http://www.jazznetz.de/

spaarne

One of my long time favorites is the Dr. Jazz in Düsseldorf.

DalaiLlama

Why should you be the one to worry? Get your son to do the heavy lifting - he's the Jazz guy, task him with the research.

Jazz is a respected art form in Germany, in concert situations audiences sit still and listen, as they do in classical concerts. Even in clubs they often behave as if it were a concert - the artistis love it and everybody gets their money's worth.

These are good resources:

www.jazzpages.com/

German Jazz Federation www.djf.de

Blues in Germany www.bluesfestival.de/en/start.html

Worth a swing (!) by Darmstadt for their collection www.jazzinstitut.de/us.htm

2009 is one of the years of the www.musiktriennale.de

DAX

Berlin jazz radio station 101.9: www.jazzradio.net

French jazz radio station: www.radiofrance.fr/chaines/fip/accueil/

For world music and modern jazz in Prenzlauerberg:
B-FLAT
Rosenthaler Straße 13, a really fun place to go for international jazz. www.b-flat-berlin.de/

For blues & soul jazz in Kreuzberg:
Yorckschloesschen
Live jazz & blues on Wed & Sat nights(9pm till midnight), also Sunday afternoons(2-6pm) www.yorckschloesschen.de/
They serve wienerschnitzel and good swabian cooking. They also serve good & cheap breakfast/brunch.

Jazz for wine lovers in Charlottenburg(West Berlin):
Jazz Wine Club Duke Restaurant (Hotel Ellington)
Nürnberger Str. 50-55, on the same side street as Kadewe (across the street)Nice live jazz with a piano bar singer singing Gerschwin tunes
Good food from weisswurst to risotto, steak and fish. Perfect for Sunday brunch.

For a relaxing brasilian jazz scene in the Mitte:
Smooth Jazz Berlin
Zimmerstr 30, 3 blocks south of Leipzigerstrasse just a couple blocks east of Friedrichstrasse near the Marriott Courtyard.


If you are thinking of going to jazz concerts in Germany: www.jazzecho.de/index_5669.jsp

danigirl235

Thanks--this is exactly what I am looking for. DalaiLlama has a good point, and I did tell my son to talk to friends and other musicians about where to go; however, he's coming from a 20-year old college student/musician paradigm and mine is more of a mom with a budget paradigm, so I need to figure out now where we are likely to end up. Plus, I kind of like the planning--not sure why I didn't assert more say in the past.

wanderfrau

Depending on your exact dates of travel, you may want to consider the Idstein Jazz Festival,10-12 July 2009. It will be the 25th year it is held.

Idstein is not far from Frankfurt. It is a great little town. Most of the bands play in venues right in town and you can walk from one place to the other. Lots of places to enjoy German beer. If you stay in town, no worrying about drinking and driving.

A three day ticket for all the venues is 15 Euro.

www.idstein.de has more info, but it is all in German and currently only has detailed information about the 2008 program. But, your son can check it out and see if he recognizes any of the groups that played last year.

Have fun

danigirl235

Thanks, Wanderfrau. I am finding that a lot of the information available is in German, but I teach at a community college and have access to translators!

I realized now I need to get a more detailed map so I can plot all of these recommendations.