"I'm really happy": Positive balance of Tölzer "Kanapee Open Air"

Created: 07/05/2022, 19:00

By: Veronika Ahn-Tauchnitz

There were 15 successful events in the tent in the rose garden.

Wolfgang Ramadan and his team cleaned up on Monday.

© Proehl

15 concerts, good response: organizer Wolfgang Ramadan draws a positive balance after his "Kanapee Musik Open Air" festival in Bad Tölz.

Bad Tölz

- Wolfgang Ramadan leans back, relaxes, smiles and says: "I'm really happy and totally relieved." The evening before, the performance of the band "Wedaleichdn" was the last event of the "Kanapee Musik Open Air" festival in the Tölz rose garden happened.

Ramadan and his team have just finished the clean-up work.

“We had a great audience and great support.

And I have a great team.” In addition, there were a good 3,700 spectators this year compared to last year.

"Even though we had ten fewer events this year," says Ramadan.

16 cabaret and music evenings with renowned artists such as Luise Kinseher, Martina Schwarzmann, Evelyn Huber or Han's Klaffl were planned, only one event had to be cancelled.

"Heissmann & Rassau" could not perform due to illness.

The Ickinger had had some doubts beforehand that the festival, which was taking place for the second time, would be a success.

Advance sales were slow (we reported).

Only for Martina Schwarzmann there were more requests than places.

The full capacity of 600 seats was then reserved for their performance.

Otherwise, Ramadan was limited to 300 places.

“And they were almost always full.

A lot is now sold at the box office.” The outlier was Matthias Kellner with around 90 spectators.

"He is one of the hardest working and most talented musicians

I know,” says Ramadan.

But because he is so diligent, he plays a lot in the area, explains Ickinger the manageable popularity.

But those who were there experienced a magnificent concert.

A test balloon was the evening with "Volxgesang", where the audience sang.

“I liked the idea,” says Ramadan – and around 200 people streamed into the rose garden that evening too.

At the benefit concert, 2000 euros in donations for the Ukraine aid in the district were collected.

“It was really really idyllic”

Unlike the premiere a year ago, when the audience was shaking at eight degrees and rain and the tent had to be evacuated on the first evening due to bad weather, the weather held up this time.

"We only had one rainy day," says Ramadan.

"Otherwise it was really, really idyllic."

Nevertheless, there was excitement at the beginning.

When the presale started, the website was hacked.

"She just collapsed," says Ramadan.

The result was countless bookings that could no longer be assigned.

“We had to find out who bought what,” says Ramadan.

They worked for days to bring order to the chaos and somehow sort out double or triple bookings.

Much support, praise and thanks

After that it was only uphill.

Ramadan is grateful for the financial support he receives.

There are funds for the festival from the federal program “Neustart Kultur”, the Free State is also providing funding.

And the city council and mayor of Tölz also "put cultural funding on a stable footing," says Ickinger.

There is a quite significant cultural budget, the funds of which have been fairly distributed among the organizers.

"Without that, it wouldn't work," says Ramadan.

If the Corona period has brought something good, “it is that we freelancers are suddenly on the politicians’ screen,” says Ickinger.

But there was also a lot of support from the audience.

There are guests who bought tickets for all 15 events.

A couple from Wasserburg, who were there on many evenings, also brought a Tragl beer with them every Ramadan.

And he gets emails with praise and thanks.

In return, he also "worked off a lot of guilt," he says and laughs.

Loyal subscribers to his culture series, who waived a refund during the Corona period, could now look forward to free tickets, for example.

Will there be a new edition next year?

“Now we know how to do it,” says Ramadan and smiles.

In addition, his motto is: "Art and culture keeps the world in balance." And if not all cultural organizers plan their events at the same time in June and July for fear of new Corona requirements in autumn, it will certainly be a little easier for everyone, adds the Ickinger.

In the medium term, he is convinced, "Tölz can become the cultural center of the Oberland".

You can find more current news from the region around Bad Tölz at Merkur.de/Bad Tölz.