17 March 2021 press release

clicked in – A virtual look behind the scenes at the DNB
Virtual Open Day on 21 March 2021 from 13:00 until 17:00

The German National Library’s Open Day is being held as a virtual event only simultaneously in Leipzig and Frankfurt am Main for the first time. By hosting the event online, this coming Sunday (21 March 2021) it will be possible to attend guided tours of both sites and take part in themed tours, a discussion with the Director General and an e-quiz, all between the hours of 13:00 and 17:00. Each of the 25-minute thematic categories will feature a sequence of live formats, video clips and interactive formats. No registration is required and participation is free of charge. You can find the access details and all the information on the schedule online at www.dnb.de/tdot

Virtual tours of the Leipzig and Frankfurt am Main sites allow you to experience the different architecture and construction styles in a direct comparison. Our tour guides will answer your questions in the chat throughout the tour. In other scheduled event topics, we will describe what’s involved in the preservation of more than 41 million media and explain how to search for the origins of books, a task known as provenance research. The German Music Archive, the German Museum of Books and Writing and the German Exile Archive 1933–1945 will present themselves and their unique collections in separate virtual events. You can take part in all the scheduled activities independently from one another.

Clicked in – a virtual look behind the scenes at the DNB

Oppen day 21 March 2021 13:00 to 17:00
Prior booking not required | Free admission
Programme and access to the events: www.dnb.de/tdot

Programme

13:00 to 13:25 and 15:20 to 15:45

A virtual 360° tour, including live explanations, of the German National Library in Leipzig

During a virtual tour, together with our tour guide, you can explore the listed library building in Leipzig. You can see the historical and modern reading rooms, which are designed in very different styles and reflect the Zeitgeist of the respective era in which they were built. You can also take a look inside the extension opened in 2011, and learn interesting facts about the history and tasks of the German National Library. Our tour guide will answer your questions in the chat as part of the tour.

13:20 to 13:45 and 16:00 to 16:25

A virtual tour, including live explanations, of the German National Library in Frankfurt am Main

Our tour guide will take you on a virtual tour through the building in Frankfurt am Main. She will explain why the German National Library was given this name and what makes it different from other libraries. Get background information and particulars about the building and the artworks associated with it. Take a look inside the reading room and the underground stacks, which are usually hidden from the public. We show you how we store books, periodicals, CDs, microfilms, maps and other media over an area the size of three football fields and give them the best possible protection.

13:40 to 14:05 and 15:40 to 16:05

„We collect everything except...hmm, what was it again?“

Whether printed or digital, whether published privately or by a publishing company: we collect everything! In all, our holdings encompass more than 40 million books, newspapers, journals, printed music and musical works, maps, and archival materials in both physical and digital formats. We collect general and specialised works on all areas and subjects, in all sizes and formats. Be it hardback or paperback, daily newspapers or e-papers, audio books or music, maps of the land or sea, literature in a suitcase or the smallest book in the world. All this and much more can be found in the holdings and collections of the German National Library.

14:00 to 14:25

In conversation with the Director General

Frank Scholze, the Director General of the German National Library since 2020, speaks with Sandra Baumgart about current developments, opportunities and challenges, and will answer your questions.

14:20 to 14:45

A new app for our collection preservation

We show you how we record and evaluate the preservation and storage status of millions of media works with the help of an app specially developed for us. Collection preservation work can also be done digitally, yet still be closely linked to the physicality of books!

14:40 to 15:05 and 17:00 to 17:25

E-quiz: Digital is in!

An interactive quiz to familiarise yourself with our online resources. Researching, accessing and using e-books, digitalised books and sound recordings – trying it out directly and answering questions together.
Technical note: To take part in the quiz, we recommend that you use a PC instead of a mobile device.

15:00 to 15:25

Can you read it?

Sigmund Freud, Stefan Zweig, Joseph Roth, Else Lasker-Schüler and Walter Benjamin did not exactly have the most legible of hand-writing. Join us in deciphering letters from the German Exile Archive 1933–1945.

16:20 to 16:45

Shellac, wax and horsehair – a virtual stroll througt the exhibition of the German Music Archive

How did the early sound-recording industry evolve following the invention of the phonograph, and what (at times strange) fruit did it bring forth? Follow the head of the German Music Archive on a virtual journey through the history of sound recording and playback.

16:40 to 17:05

In search of the origins of books – taking a look at provenance research

The collections of the German National Library contain books that were confiscated from their owners as the result of racist, religious or political persecution. How can one find these books and conduct research into their rightful owners? Our provenance researcher takes you with her on her search for clues.

Background

The German National Library collects, catalogues and archives all printed and digital material published or distributed in Germany since 1913 along with foreign publications about Germany or in the German language. This includes all sheet music and music resources published in Germany. Its collections consist of around 40 million media units; these and other services can be accessed in the reading rooms in Leipzig and Frankfurt am Main and in digital form in the World Wide Web where this is permitted by law.

The German National Library also holds extensive special collections of inestimable value in the German Exile Archive 1933–1945 and the German Museum of Books and Writing. It regularly organises readings, exhibitions, presentations and concerts to draw attention to its treasures and promotes a culture of books, reading and music with around 220,000 visitors a year to its premises in Leipzig and Frankfurt am Main, and a varied programme of prestigious events.

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