Chinesischer Turm e.V.The sound of the English Garden
Brass music from the tower
Here the music comes from above. In summer the brass band sits on the first floor of the Chinese Tower and plays over the heads of the guests into the beer garden. Look up and you will usually see little more than brass glinting between the eaves.
Music
When the band plays
- Season
- summer, in beer garden weather
- Playing days
- according to the beer garden, Wednesdays from 4 pm, Fridays from 3 pm, Saturdays from 2 pm, Sundays from noon
- In rain
- no music
- Band
- currently, according to the beer garden, Mathias Achatz and his band, playing Bavarian and Bohemian brass music
- Admission
- none. No ticket, no programme.
- End
- the music stops by 10 pm at the latest, as the Beer Garden Ordinance requires
The times are set by the beer garden, not by us, and the weather has the last word anyway. The gallery has a roof but no walls; in rain it stays empty. If you want to be sure, come on a sunny Sunday after lunch.
Why the sound carries
The band sits on a gallery that runs all the way round, a few metres above the gravel and under a wide, overhanging roof. Three things work in its favour:
The height. From above, the sound falls across the tables instead of getting caught in the first row of backs, jackets and beer mugs. At ground level, probably only the tuba would reach the far end.
The roof. It throws part of the sound back down and outwards, much like the sounding board above a church pulpit.
The instruments. Brass is made for the open air. Brass band music grew out of military and outdoor music and was loud enough for large squares long before there were power sockets.
The arrangement has one condition: the music carries only as long as the beer garden lets it. A full garden can out-chatter any band. That it mostly does not is one of the quieter virtues of this place.
What is played
A brass band in a beer garden does not play a concert programme. It has a stock and dips into it according to mood, time of day and the level in the mugs: marches as the frame, polka and Boarischer to tap along to, waltzes as the afternoon grows long, Ländler and Zwiefacher as the core of the folk music.
Flugelhorns and trumpets carry the melody, tenor horns and trombones the middle voices, the tuba the bass. Clarinets lay the high notes over the top, and the percussion holds it all together. That is a typical line-up: small enough for the gallery, strong enough for the whole garden.
Since when
The tower was built 1789 to 1790 as a garden folly with a purpose. It is often said that its gallery was meant as a music stage from the start; we know of no contemporary evidence for that. The present is certain: since the tower was closed for safety reasons in the 1970s, only the brass bands that play there regularly are allowed up. They are working musicians, not museum pieces.
What we have to do with it
Organisationally, nothing. The beer garden looks after the music. We, the Chinesischer Turm e.V., listen and write down why this gallery is there and what it can do. The other customs of the place are described on the traditions page.
Frequently asked questions
When does the brass band play at the Chinese Tower?
In summer, in beer garden weather: according to the beer garden, on Wednesdays from 4 pm, on Fridays from 3 pm, on Saturdays from 2 pm and on Sundays from noon. In rain there is no music.
Does the brass music at the Chinese Tower cost admission?
No. No admission, no ticket, no programme.
Why does the music from the tower carry so far?
Because the band sits a few metres up on a roofed gallery. From above, the sound falls across the tables, the roof throws it back, and brass instruments are built for playing outdoors.
Which band plays at the Chinese Tower?
According to the beer garden, currently Mathias Achatz and his band, with traditional Bavarian and Bohemian folk music.
How long has there been music at the Chinese Tower?
The tower has stood since 1790. That the gallery was meant as a music stage even then is part of the tradition but not documented by contemporary sources. Since the tower was closed in the 1970s, only the brass bands are allowed up.