The German embassy's new culture guy, a "Drei-Laender," likes the prose of Herman Hesse and using jazz music to communicate
He comes from Freiburg ,southern Germany , but his father is Alsatian and his mother is Westphania grandparents from Switzerland. In German, his native tongue, a special term exists for such people with a cross-border lineage: “Drei-Laender” (three-country person). For German embassy culture attache Jean-Pierre Froehly, the reality is that he’s sometimes “too German for the French and too French for the Germans, but it also means I’m open to new ideas,” he says.
Sitting across from Froehly at one of his favorite local lunch spots, Pantagruel Osteria, he says he feels very comfortable in Kyiv – his first posting abroad as a diplomat. We met for the first time back in July at the German embassy, introduced at a farewell party for a few departing embassy staff, quickly making small talk. I learned that he had just moved to Kyiv from Berlin and that he also is an accomplished jazz guitarist.
Froehly orders quickly, taking the spaghetti carbonara (Hr 46) and a glass of Tocai Friulano (Hr 40 for 100 ml) and bottle of Evian mineral water (Hr 13) to drink. He lights a cigarette after ordering and says that he recently did a lecture on German literature at Kyiv National Linguistic University. The topic was German author Herman Hesse, his favorite.
“The universe of Hesse was very unique and romantic in its style,” he says, adding that Hesse, who wrote such novels as “Siddhartha” and “Steppenwolf,” was also a painter, among other things.
“His prose works were quite psychoanalytical and introspective, bringing the individual to the fore. I think this could be very important for Ukraine, a country emerging from a troubled past.
“Hesse addresses youth and the idea of discovery of different worlds within ourselves. He talks about going further,” Froehly says, “and not standing still.”
The Importance of Culture
Froehly, 32, studied international relations in Paris and feels a certain kinship with Ukrainians since people in Germany and France, too, have often seen borders move but identities remain the same thanks to culture. Having a mixed ancestry has given Froehly a unique take on culture and cultural identity. In fact, despite a grueling schedule that often has him traveling across Ukraine, he wants to continue giving the odd university lecture on the subject.
“Identity is my favorite question in the social sciences,” he says. In the age of globalization, culture offers a particular defining point for him in view of recent German, European and world history.
But political science was never enough for Froehly. “You can’t stick on one subject for life,” he says. All through his life he has been a voracious reader and later a dedicated jazz musician. He began playing piano at an early age, didn’t like it, and by age 10 he fell in love with a guitar he was given by an uncle. He studied classical music at first, but by age 18 he’d discovered jazz and didn’t look back.
“Jazz is the music of communication, of improvisation,” Froehly says, “not only with the public, but with other musicians, communicating with each other through the music, though within the framework of the composition or style.” He counts among his greatest influences jazz guitar great Kenny Burrell and lesser-known figures such as Hungarian-born Attila Zoller, who emigrated to the United States and fashioned a career for himself doing soundtracks for films and playing free jazz. It’s exactly this style of jazz that Froehly likes best.
“Free jazz splits off from classic form more often,” he says, naming John Coltrane as another inspiration. “Classic jazz is more structured, more predictable.”
His Big Chance
To play the kind of music he likes, Froehly will start his own band here in Kyiv, and he already knows what the lineup will be: a bass player, a flautist (one of his favorite jazz instruments) and a pianist to go with himself on guitar, though he’ll later do away with the piano in favor of a good drummer. He says there’s just too much rivalry onstage between a guitarist and pianist looking to solo.
An early chance for Froehly to play here in Kyiv will be at the Goethe Institute this Sunday, Dec. 11, when he and several local musicians will play at that venerable German cultural institution’s day-long open house at its new location in Podil. He’s excited about the chance to play: “It’s even better in my job when you can bring your own interests to bear, and give something from your own perspective,” he says.
He’s just as easily excited talking about his regular work, which puts him in touch with all kinds of interesting figures.
Among local culture figures, Froehly has met novelist Andrey Kurkov. He’s read all three of Kurkov’s novels and he even counts him among his neighbors, and Froehly recently welcomed to Kyiv German soccer legend Franz Beckenbauer who, as president of soccer’s 2006 World Cup organizing committee, came here in early November to promote the tournament. But he’s also been just as easily impressed by complete strangers. At a press conference two years ago in Dhaka, Bangladesh, where the German foreign ministry jazz band was to play a concert, a few local journalists sang a traditional song. The band had them sing it on stage at the concert, incorporating it into their performance, which they recorded live. Just thinking about it makes Froehly smile.
“I’m just curious, going through the world with open eyes,” he says simply. As for what the future holds, he adds, “It depends on what life brings.”
Pantagruel Osteria
1 Lysenko, 278-8142.
Open Mon.-Fri. from 7 a.m. till 11 p.m.,
Sat.-Sun. from 11 a.m. till 11 p.m.
English menu: Yes.
English-speaking staff: Yes.Average price of main dish: Hr 65.
