Writings and pictures
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Germany September 2026
The photograph above is the emblem of Hamburg, officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg. This is where my adventure began on the 10th of September when I arrived by train and ended on the 27th when I flew back. This has been a good tour. In Germany, just as in the UK, it’s…
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Konzertdiele
The Konzertdiele (Concert Hall) in Moorhausen is in a renovated barn that dates back to the 16th century. Here is the interior set up ready for the concert. Charlie bought the property in 2003 and renovated the barn as a project with no particular usage in mind. When it was finished, he realised that it…
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Willie’s Friday at Paganinis
This is one of a few small live music venues in Bremen. One of the programs here is called „Willie’s Friday“ and the other is called „Crossing Borders“. Both attract concert artists and session players, mixing music from a number of genres. Cafe Paganini, run by Roland Eberle, is a very special place and Ray…
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Herne
We had a long drive north through the Rhineland to Herne, near Dortmund. On the autobahn, we spotted a Renault Deux Chevaux trundling along behind us. We tried to slow down so it would overtake us and I could get a better picture but we didn’t want to go quite that slow. The show was…
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A Day Off
Wednesday was a day off which we spent staying with Ulf nearby to Mitlechtern in the Hesse region. This was the second sunny day of the tour and we were able to walk up the hill from behind Ulf’s house to a maintained path through the woods and fields. This is the Odenwald or Odin’s…
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Alter Tanzsaal
This is the Old Dance Hall (Alter Tanzsaal) in Mitlechtern and today was Ray’s birthday. The support act for tonight was Levitacion, a trio with Michael on flute, Ulf on guitar and vocal, Michael on percussion. This was the eighth consecutive show before a day off and Ray began his set with Even For A…
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Cowhide Wohnzimmer
Monday was a house concert in Schwalbach am Tanus, a satellite town of Frankfurt am Main, the main financial centre of Germany. Dietmar and his wife Karin have been hosting Wohnzimmer (living room) concerts since 2012. They began inviting family and friends for live music in their living room, then word got around and more…
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A lovely small theatre
The Büchner Bühne is a lovely small theatre in the small town of Riedstadt. It is named after Georg Büchner who was born nearby in 1813. Büchner was a dramatist and writer of poetry and prose. He died at the age of only 23 but his writings are generally held in great esteem in Germany.…
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Antikhof Drei Eichen
Saturday found us in Bröckel, a small village in a very rural area north east of Hannover. Antikhof Drei Eichen is an antiques and arts centre and hosts music concerts once a month. We have been here before, at the end May in 2023 when it was warm enough to set up outside. Now it…
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Littera Nova Hildesheim
Friday night Ray was back at Littera Nova in Hildesheim. He was here in June 2023 and you can see pictures of the venue here. The only thing that has changed is that the white piano is no longer on the stage – drummers didn’t like it being there and it was seldom used. However,…
