The pronunciation is fine

‘German language, difficult language’: this frequently used phrase usually refers to the grammar of the German language. However, German pronunciation is also quite a challenge: umlauts, the similarities and differences between the sounds ‘f’, ‘v’, ‘w’ or ‘ph’, fricatives, diphthongs, and so on. Especially for those whose native language is not German, this can be a major hurdle, making professional and private life more difficult. But it doesn’t have to be that way, at least not for the international students and researchers who are taking part in two musical event series organised by the Language Centre and the International Office (IO) during the summer semester: They sing German songs together in small choirs under the professional guidance of singer, choirmaster and German philologist Aline Klieber, improving their (spoken) German in a fun and holistic way.

The course

Participants in the ‘wissen.leben.singen’ course, a choir project for international students at the Language Centre, have to be a bit patient before they can start to get singing. After all, it is an official course for which credits are awarded upon successful completion. Nevertheless, interest is high. Aline Klieber had to split the course in two at the beginning of term so that on Thursdays during the semester two groups make their way to the auditorium of the Catholic Student and University Community (KSHG). The programme for the two groups is identical: after a presentation in which the groups repeat a lesson on short and long vowels – based on the poem ‘Er ist's’ by Eduard Mörike, for example – the groups get moving. The course then transforms, losing its classic seminar character, and the choirmaster introduces movement into the group. Warm-up and vocal exercises to activate the body and vocal apparatus are a prerequisite for singing choral music together: limbs are shaken, scale exercises are performed (‘do, re, mi’). It is noticeable that, in addition to the overall joy, there are also some inhibitions about being loud and present, which is why Aline Klieber happily demands more energy: ‘A wrong note is always better than no note.’

Things immediately get louder and more relaxed, with the students singing Hannes Wader’s ‘Heute hier, morgen dort’ or Cesar Bresgen’s ‘Lachend kommt der Sommer über das Feld’, among others, and practising the content of today’s lesson – the different ‘ch’ sounds, such as in ‘ich’ and ‘ach’. Fundamental musical work is also a focus as the students are not only here to get credits, but also to prepare for a concert in the Church of St. Petri on 24 June at 7pm ...

The after-work activity

On a spring evening in the Alexander-von-Humboldt-House, things are a little smaller and more intimate. ‘Learning German in a Choir’ is the title of the event organised by the  Language Centre’s German as a Foreign Language Department (LDaF) in cooperation with the International Office. The ten participants have completed their day’s work and, unlike the students, are not aiming to get credit; thus the event is solely about the joint vocal learning experience. The obligatory vocal warm-up and relaxation exercises are followed by a brief discussion of German phonetic phenomena such as the difference between ‘u’ and ‘ü’. The sound of the German pop songs ‘Komet’ and ‘99 Luftballons’ then fills the room. This diversely international group of participants from Brazil, Italy, Portugal, Poland and China sing cheerfully and wholeheartedly. ‘Music is a great way to learn German. Aline is very open, she brings a lot of energy,’ emphasises Brazilian Anna Aubert after the rehearsal. As an international researcher, she sometimes felt isolated, so the course was very important to her.

The choirmaster was successful in significantly improving their pronunciation. During the rehearsal, a feeling of awe arises, fuelled by the observation of how much effort the participants put into learning German, how they master the ending of ‘Luftballons’, how an ‘f’ occasionally threatens to turn into a ‘w’ (‘Feld’ and ‘Welt’) or how they search for the correct length of the first ‘o’ in ‘Horizont’. But undeterred, like the students in the KSHG auditorium, they form a harmony and show what singing together can do: it unites and provides transferable skills for many situations in life.

Author: André Bednarz

A German version of this article is part of a theme page on the ‘voice’ as the instrument of the year in the university newspaper wissen|leben No. 4, 12 June 2025.

Further information

• The June issue of the university newspaper as PDF (in German)
• All issues of the university newspaper at a glance (in German)
• The Language Centre at the University of Münster
• The International Office at the University of Münster