By Bike to the "Kinderkonzert" - Bonn´s Beethoven Orchestra Playing

4th "Kinderkonzert" in Bonn: "The young person's guide to the orchestra" by Benjamin Britten

On May 8, 2011 we went  by bike to  the fourth concert for children in the concert hall of Bonn, Germany.
The city of Bonn, where the famous composer Beethoven was born, takes pride in offering a number of concerts every year that are especially for children and families.  As the weather was excellent, we went by bike on an 8 kilometer long tour to reach the Beethovenhalle which is located on the left side of the river Rhine.  Crossing the bridge from Beuel to Bonn you can spot it, as on this photo.

Crossing the recently improved Kennedy Bridge of Bonn (now with a wide bicycle lane)

Thomas Honickel directed the Beethoven Orchestra of Bonn.  At first "The composer is dead", a detective story by Nathaniel Stookeyrst,  was performed in which a  Sherlock Holmes actor helped to introduce all the  instruments of a typical orchestra of classical music.  The kids loved it.

The second piece of this concert of about one hour, from 11 to 12 a.m., was  "The young person's guide to the orchestra" by Benjamin Britten.

After the concert, which ended with much applause, some children took the liberty to walk onto the stage where they had the chance to get a close up view of the instruments.  The friendly musicians readily showed their instruments and answered questions.  Six year old Konrad took the chance to talk to a man who was just going to leave with his violoncello.  Konrad learnt that the man`s instrument was so old that Mozart could have played on it.

And finally we want to show you a picture taken inside the Beethoven hall. Some concert visitors took great interest in the way the author was unfolding his bike which had been securely parked in the cloakroom during the concert.

Some concert visitors taking a keen interest as the author is unfolding his Bromptom

After a wonderful concert, the question was whether to pedal back home uphill or to take the bikes aboard a bus and thus opt for an "easy sailing". (see my blog entry Up by bus and down by bike )