The Lernen to Talk Show: Episode 11 – Orchestra!

Hello from anything-but-sunny Duisburg! Week ten was a long one, ladies and gentlemen. Never in my life had I chased geese quite as wild as those I’ve been forced to pursue in order to enroll as a student here and find someplace to live. But despite the chaos, last night I managed to find (a somewhat reluctant) guest for Episode 11! This is a very notable episode, as it marks the first one to take place an entire week away from actual German language classes. Any improvements I may have made between 10 and 11 (and for all future episodes!) result not from instruction but from the tried and true method of simply trying to survive in another language. I have a lot more I’d like to say about the events surrounding this conversation, but I’ll save it for another post. For now, enjoy my latest attempt at a conversation!

Kansas Kate, if you’re out there, please weigh in with any errors in my speech subtitles. Ohne dich bin ich verloren.

0:00 – 0:03 – Ever wondered what happens during those few seconds before my awkward introduction? This is for you.

0:22 – Maybe I should write up a contract for people to read over before they appear…

0:35 – Seriously. She plays the solo in the first movement the best I’ve ever heard it.

0:44 – She taught me that one about twenty minutes before this video was shot. My short term memory is still struggling. But for what it’s worth, this is a particularly confusing phrase because it seems to leave the receiver of a compliment out. “Es hört sich gut an” literally translates to “it sounds good”.

0:51 – I think I was supposed to say “mit” when I said “in”. “With” this group vs. “in” this group…

1:08 – Again I think I bit off more than I could chew here… But that’s how I roll with foreign languages. Function over form!

1:24 – In earlier episodes I’d made the mistake of saying “Wochen”, meaning “weeks”, when I meant to say “Woche”, meaning “week”. In this case, “Proben” vs “Probe”. Same horse, different animal. Or something like that.

1:57 – Go see my brother Jimmy perform with MYA in Evanston on October 30th!

2:06 – Not sure if “Parte” is the right word. Actually, not sure if “Parte” is even a word.

2:12 – The conductor’s name was Johannes, too! Not even kidding.

2:15 – Very good question…

2:18 – …to which I reply by deftly changing the subject.

2:29 – Gotta love that pre-downbeat din.

2:37 – I think this pretty well answers her question.

2:40 – And yet somehow I managed not to get lost during the whole rehearsal!

2:47 – “Und die Pause ist schon gefertig.” I think I went a bit overboard on this one. Corrections, anyone? I think I could have just said “Und die Pause ist schon fertig.”