Diplomatic, Academic and Literary Illuminati attend launch of "Dánnerstag" Poetry Project

Merrion Square, Dublin on 2 September last was a special day for Irish-German studies in the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences when the poetry project “Dánnerstag” was launched in the Goethe Institut, Dublin. Based in the Centre for Irish-German Studies, the project runs until May 2022 and is funded by the German, Austrian and Swiss Embassies and by the DAAD (Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst / German Academic Exchange Service). The launch received financial support from Foras na Gaeilge. In the peaceful surroundings of the beautiful library of the Goethe Institut, Ulrike Gasser, Director of the Institut welcomed the audience and reminded those present, among them Camille von Garnier of the Swiss Embassy, of the place that the Goethe Institut has in the cultural heart of Ireland. His Excellency Dr. Thomas Nader, Austrian Ambassador to Ireland, then spoke of the many successful collaborations with the Centre for Irish-German Studies and wished the Dánnerstag project well. An Irish speaker, Robert Henneberg, Cultural Attaché to the German Embassy, spoke of his love for the Irish language. In their opening remarks, project leaders Professor Gisela Holfter, Director of the Centre for Irish-German Studies in the University of Limerick, and Dr. Sorcha de Brún, School of English, Irish and Communication described to the assembled audience how “Dánnerstag” was coined as the project title, referring as it does to to poem in Irish and Thursday in German. Both project leaders noted how "Dánnerstag" was a wonderful literary and research opportunity to explore and deepen the cultural and linguistic links between contemporary German language poetry and Irish language translation, and how the uniqueness of this project lies in the span and range of poems translated. Also present were Professor Joachim Fischer, Deputy Director of the Centre for Irish-German Studies at UL and Jean Monnet Chair in European Cultural Studies; Professor Alan Titley, scholar, author, translator and Professor Emeritus of University College Cork; and Professor Emeritus Eda Sagarra from Trinity College Dublin. Dr Siobhán Donovan, Head of German and Eoin McEvoy, educational technologist and translator of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe of University College Dublin also numbered among the guests. Described by Alan Titley as an event that marked an excellent and culturally significant project, the taster videos shown to assembled guests and friends of Irish, Ireland and the German language at the launch were an exciting taste of what to expect over the coming months. The poems performed were celebratory, hopeful and yet a poignant reminder of loss, both universal and personal. Among the poems showcased at the launch were Jan Wagner’s ‘krähenghasele’ dedicated to his friend and colleague, the poet Matthew Sweeney, and translated into English and Irish by students of the University of Limerick. Sweeney, a prolific poet who died in 2018, was a close friend of Wagner’s and a much-loved guest of the Centre for Irish-German Studies. The vagaries of the global pandemic with its note of hope were evident in Ilma Rakusa’s sparkling poem ‘Wir müssen tanzen’, translated into English by Sue Vickerman and Gisela Holfter and into Irish by Sorcha de Brún. Semier Insayif’s poem, ‘Ich Dir, translated into English and Irish by Sorcha de Brún and read with verve and energy by Insayif from Vienna, held the promise of better times to come with its reference to ‘wachsen/bláthú/bloom’. This contrasted with the lyrical eroticism of Paul Celan’s poem of love and longing, ‘Corona’, translated into English by Pierre Joris and into Irish by Limerick author and translator Gabriel Rosenstock and read by Rosenstock. Perhaps it was the opening lines of Celan’s poem that best described the night of the launch of “Dánnerstag”, and the enduring friendship between all things Irish and speakers of the German language over many long years: ‘‘Autumn eats its leaf out of my hand: we are friends".