Gerbersau Reading Summer 2026 – The Marble Saw

**The Gerbersau Reading Summer celebrates its 22nd edition!** **Since 2003, the Gerbersau Reading Summer has been a cultural highlight, featuring readings from Hermann Hesse’s works accompanied by music. This year, from July 3 to August 7, visitors can once again enjoy a captivating blend of music and literature. As always, the focus will be on Hermann Hesse’s Gerbersau stories, which draw their content from Hesse’s own stories and memoirs. The opening event will take place on July 3 at 7:30 p.m. on Calw’s market square in front of Hermann Hesse’s birthplace. ______________________________** **During the "Gerbersauer Lesesommer," Hermann Hesse’s stories that relate to his birthplace and hometown of Calw and its surroundings will be read. In these stories, he usually gave the town the poetic name "Gerbersau"—the tanners’ meadow—in memory of the tanners who once practiced their craft on the banks of the Nagold River.** **Hermann Hesse was born on July 2, 1877, in the half-timbered house located on Calw’s market square across from City Hall, and spent his first four years of life there. His parents and grandparents worked for the Basel Mission and had been sent by it to Calw to lead the Christian “Calw Publishing Association,” which, among other things, published writings for the mission. When Hermann Hesse was four years old, his father was appointed as a teacher at the Basel Mission headquarters, whereupon he moved with his family to Basel for five years. At the age of nine, however, he returned to Calw in 1886, as his father had returned to the publishing house. He then spent most of the next nine years living in Calw. During this time, he got to know the town with all its nooks and crannies, its people, and their stories. He drew on these experiences to create the material for his “Gerbersauer Erzählungen.”** **INFO** **The “Gerbersauer Lesesommer” is organized for the city of Calw by Herbert Schnierle-Lutz (concept) and the City of Calw Cultural Office (organization). A flyer with the complete program for the “Gerbersauer Lesesommer 2026” is available at [www.calw.de/Gerbersauer-Lesesommer](www.calw.de/Gerbersauer-Lesesommer) and at the Tourist Information Office next to Calw City Hall (Tel. 07051-167-399). Tickets for 24 euros are also available there and at [www.reservix.de](http://www.reservix.de). ** **Season passes for the event series are available exclusively at the Tourist Information Office.**