Oktoberfest comes to wet, but satisfying close

By RON LARSEN

Journal Staff Writer

NEW ULM -- While rain briefly threatened morning outdoor activities, the Concord Singers and a passel of polka bands at the Holiday Inn brought the 2001 Oktoberfest to a successful close Saturday night.

While a final count on attendance at the motel was yet to be had, Chamber of Commerce President Jeanne Albrecht was excited about the turnout for the downtown activities on Center Street.

"We got off to a slow start this morning with the rain," Albrecht said, "but the attendance this afternoon has been just great."

She estimated attendance for the first Saturday, October 6, of Oktoberfest at about 1,000 and 500-600 for this Saturday.

"It's a little hard to tell because we're not selling tickets like they're doing at the Holiday Inn so we have to gauge it more on our concession sales," she said.

Between the Marv Nissel band and the raffle featuring a $10,000 first prize and a total of 47 prizes, the picnic-style tables were filled until the 5 o'clock closing.

Over at the Holiday Inn, the German band, Die Wilderer (The Poacher) was the closing act in the Poolside Room, after having played four other sets during the afternoon and evening. The Concord Singers and the Valley Boys also performed there.

The band which hails from the Bavarian Forest some 300 miles west of Munich mixed Bavarian, Austrian and favorite American polka pieces with a certain flair.

They opened one set with a series of four trumpet solos by Christian Jakob, delivered from four different locations at the back of the room to begin the opening song.

Jakob who also does vocals is joined by Juergen Kuchler on bass guitar and vocals, Karl-Heinz unProbst on guitar, Peter Hartel on keyboard and vocals, Johny Zbysek Bruj on saxophone, Josef "Joshi" Brozik on accordion and Radek Vanik on drums.

"We've played together for 14 years," Kuchler said. "This is our first trip to the United States and New Ulm."

Across the way in the German Rivers Room, Marv Herzog, the Mississippi Valley Dutchmen and the Wendinger Brothers Band took turns entertaining. The room also was the site of the 5:30 p.m. polka mass with the Goodtime Dutchmen.

At Turner Hall, members of the German Bohemian Heritage Society of New Ulm heard Don H. Tolzmann, director of German-American Studies Program at the University of Cincinnati, Ohio, describe how to uncover the German Bohemian influence in various texts relating stories of German-American immigrant activities.

Tolzmann provided the insight which he developed in translating and editing at least a half dozen German language texts.

"I noted that with the German Bohemians, they're either listed as from Austria or Germany with no identification of what state or community from which they may have come."

Tolzmann said they also "would be described as a good Democrat, concerned about good government, frugal in their work or business operation, but not in the office-seeking class."

These German texts usually went into detail about what they did in education, in farming and in business, he said.

He also found that the texts described "a typical German-American position, not to be loyal to a party so much as looking at the qualities of all candidates."

Tolzmann expects a seventh book, "Recollections of New Ulm," by Rudolph Leonhart, to be released next spring. He also donated a copy of his book, "The German-American Experience," to the local German Bohemian Heritage Society library.