Stories From Germany, From Medieval Castles to Punk Rock Robots

from stunning architecture to clever inventions germany is a place where the cutting edge coexists with history here are five stories that prove the creative spirit lives on in germany one of the newest additions to the skyline in hamburg germany is a concert hall fit for a modern mozart the elbphilharmonie is considered one of the largest and most acoustically advanced concert venues in the world made up of three concert halls the elbow phil harmony seats more than 2 800 visitors the great concert hall the largest of the three halls has 10 000 unique acoustic panels that were designed using computer algorithms to create the best possible sound each panel contains one million cells that shape the sound by either absorbing the waves or having them reverberate through the space the curved design of the cells can be seen replicated throughout the entire building not to be outdone the glass exterior of the elbow fill harmony built atop a former warehouse is just as spectacular as the interior the structure rises above the elbe river and mirrors the water's wave and shine to mark the opening night the exterior featured a light show timed to the music being played within the great hall with multiple events almost every day the elbphilharmony is a must-see for music and math lovers alike [Music] settlers of catan is one of the best-selling board games of all time and nestled in the rolling hills of rosdorf germany on this picturesque street past the buzzer in building 43 and standing in the back of the garden is klaus tuber the man who made it all happen settlers of catan is a board game for up to four players where you collect resources to build settlements and cities they're worth points first to ten wins and it all started like this in the 90s and 80s i led a dental laboratory developing games was a little bit refuge for me his first game was called barbarossa when i made barbarossa i was in my early 30s i feel that this is a kind of thing i like very much developing games and it could be in the future for me a very very good hobby he designed a handful of other games and then made katan klaus had become interested in viking tales yes the story of the vikings inspired me i imagine how they reach iceland they need wood they need houses and all the things and so on this imagination i developed qatar from design to market it was a family affair this is benny tuber he lives in germany and he is klaus's youngest son and this is guido tuber and this is guido tuber he lives in san francisco he is klaus's eldest son in my family i am one of the game testers along with my mom me too [Music] we playtested the settlers of catan quite often we would all get together at the dining room table and would test and has his games sometimes he put a mickey mouse comic next to my chair so in case the game was boring he knew that i would read it instead of playing the game my dad took that and tweaked that worked on it this was sort of an exciting moment for my dad in the tuber family there's a bit of competition my father would probably say i'm the best player no sorry dad benny is the best there's a bit of a rivalry between my dad and my brother [Music] katan was officially released in germany in 1994 and it was an immediate success we had an immediate success in germany because we won game of the year worldwide to date over 24 million copies have been sold this game was born out of a story but it also creates stories the beauty of catan is that in the end you still have constructed something so in a way everybody wins it was my wish to have a very peaceful game with a lot of interaction bringing people together for me catan was a success to all the katan fans out there here's some advice well you always have to follow your strategy but also you have to complain quite a bit even though you know you're winning you still have to say you're not i love building cities as early as possible in the game never built the longest road at the beginning and there you have it although there are many castles in germany there's none quite like else castle it has been privately owned by the alts family since 11 57. [Music] the alts castle was originally constructed in the 11th century however additions and restorations have been made over the years unlike most castles else castle isn't easy to spot it sits off the main road high on a rock within a low valley and is surrounded by a lush forest many visitors are drawn to the hiking trails surrounding the castle grounds 34 generations of the els family have lived among the castle's 120 rooms and since today no one in the family lives there full time the ancestral home is open to the public every year over 300 000 visitors come to see the castle and its armory treasury and original furnishings that are over eight centuries old throughout europe's tumultuous history this enchanting castle was never invaded or destroyed its rich history has entered a spot on the 500 deutsche mark note making it a special site for those who get to experience it in person i want to give the scrap life again bring in a new purpose my art is a mix of fantasy and common sense my name is claudia coogler and i'm an artist and i'm most known for making moving robot sculptures [Music] i stumbled into making robots i was making sculptures out of scrap metal i found and then i started to move those moving parts with air pressure pistons it started with a hat moving the jaw and before i knew it i had a robot i find my scrap metal pretty much everywhere i have got my eyes open all the time potentially fantastic eye [Music] i mean there's every kind of shape you can imagine [Music] [Applause] [Music] when i build a band member i start obviously with a music making parts of fingers plugging or playing and then i build the character behind it the special thing about my robots is that they actually do play the music themselves [Music] my robots play the bass guitar the drum kit and they play the flutes they got an affinity for punk rock the whole band is called the one love machine band my robots perform all around the world tech events festivals university lectures or ted talks when people see the robots it's like they freeze for a while there's this moment of oh what's going on here and then it's usually so it's a childish gleam and the joy i like to use scrap metal because there's so much waste in the world you can't destroy you can only make it better my work is a constant game of chance and that's what i really love about it [Music] if you're having trouble finding mr or mrs swipe right it might be time to turn to matchmaking's ancient roots literally because deep in a forest in germany stands a 600 year old oak tree that has introduced hundreds of single people [Music] it all began around 1890 when the forest ranger's daughter met a chocolate maker from leipzig the father did not approve of the relationship they had to find a way to exchange messages so they used a tree about 300 feet away from the forest ranger's office a branch had broken off forming a hole and it was there they put their letters [Music] once her father learned how they were secretly communicating he finally approved of their relationship they married under the tree on june 2nd 1891. after which the tree became known as bridegroom's oak you have the outfit either there is [Music] [Music] and people still send letters to the tree to this day but can you truly find a life partner for the price of postage no one knows better than carl heinz my name is carlets martins he's only 18. [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] just give them

Channel: Great Big Story

Views: 72,103

Rating: 4.9562602 out of 5

Keywords: great big story, gbs, lag, documentary, docs, New Releases, Great Big Reels, Travel & Adventure, Human Condition, travel, adventure, germany, german, settlers of catan, catan, castle, tinder, tree, concert hall, medieval

Id: cXXhzWYrJI4

Length: 12min 19sec (739 seconds)

Published: Tue Sep 01 2020