|
For the company that I worked for I had to make several trips from here in Virginia, USA to Munich and Dresden Germany in 2001-2003. On one of these trips I had soaked up all of the Bavarian culture that I could appreciate at one time (which is a lot - Great Place!) and was feeling a little home sick when I found this music store. Folk Laden in Munich, Germany. This Picture is of the owners Ruediger and Heidi Helbig. Note the instruments in the background.
|
|
|
Ruediger & Heidi made me feel right at home. Heidi was the first to talk to me and ask me if I was a mandolin player because she saw me drooling over the Flatirons and Gibsons. She asked me to come behind the counter and started handing me mandolins to try out. I was an even weaker mandolin player then so she probably knew right off I didn't know much past a two finger G chord. I did this same thing on a couple of more trips to Munich. On the third trip to Folk Laden (probably fourth or fifth to Munich), Ruediger and Heidi joined me for a mini jam session in the store. Ruediger's banjo playing blew me away. Heidi backed him up on a real fine rythm guitar and I just tried not to hit a wrong chord. They invited me to come to a show that Ruediger's band was putting on at a Restaurant/Beer Hall outside of Munich. This picture is of about 1/3 of the store at that time.
|
|
Ruediger and Heidi later asked me to come with them out to their place for dinner and I could ride with Ruediger to the show. Talk about southern hospitality (Southern Germany that is). I had a great time at the Helbig home and Ruediger showed me many of his fine instruments. His favorite is probably his pre-war Gibson banjo. We rode out to the restaurant/beer hall/brewery (nice restaurant, but they brew their own beer. If they have done this for a few hundred years, is it still a micro brewery?) in a suburb of Munich and we starting setting up for the show. The show was upstairs and took up the whole second floor of the rather large building. Huckleberry V is the name of the band, and they put on an excellent show anchored by one of the finest banjo players I have ever heard. Here is a picture of Huckleberry V in action with Ruediger playing banjo. Notice the American flags.
|
|
|
Turns out the show was for a Truck drivers association. This picture is of 1/2 of the audience taken from right in front of the stage. If I had turned to my left there were almost as many people sitting on that side as well. It was a V shaped room. The audience had a short business meeting for their association and then about 3 hours of Bluegrass broken up by a knife throwing exhibition during the band's break. I didn't volunteer for that one. Everyone ordered off the menu so it was live music with German food and beer. One of the band members announced to the audience that I was a friend of the band's visiting from America, and I had a couple of older gentlemen come over and greet me and welcome me to their country even though they didn't speak English (which is almost unheard of for the younger people). It amazed me how some of the older people didn't speak very good English but knew the country music from the 50's and 60's better than most Americans. Johnny Cash is popular in Germany!
|
|
Picture of me (Jim Ellis of VABluegrass.com) playing around with one of Ruediger's banjos before the show. Now you have to know this is just for a photo, the G chord would be about the only thing I could find on a banjo. All of these photos were taken in 2003 so everyone shown here have gotten better looking since then. Maybe one day I will get back to Munich to play with Ruediger and Heidi again. I keep practicing on my mando hoping I might get a little better before then. I had to leave this show early and walked about 1 1/2 miles to the train station. I wasn't sure how to find it, but it worked out. I caught the last train back to my hotel. I left before the show was over because I had an early flight the next morning. It was already after 1:00 am when I got back to the hotel.
|
|
|
Picture of Ruediger cutting up in the store. I love this picture. Maybe Ruediger will use it for an album cover some day? Just so you know - Ruediger Helbig is my favorite banjo player - sorry Earl. Maybe this should be considered his unofficial fan web site? Anyhow - if you are ever in Munich and you like Bluegrass or banjo playing, go by and see Ruediger and Heidi at Folk Laden. The first page of their web site shows their new store address, and at the bottom is a link to an English version of their web page. Ruediger has a new webpage and a new instructional DVD in German. Huckleberry V is a very much in demand Bluegrass Group. The mandolin player in Huckleberry V - Rupert Paulik - has been with the group for a few years now and is an outstanding talent in his own right. Ruediger has surrounded himself with some great talent to make up a top knotch band.
|