Each year, around 20 card magicians from Germany, Austria, and Switzerland gather at Stephan Kirschbaum’s Wundermanufaktur in Nuremberg for the annual Card Workshop. This meeting was founded in 1975 by Detlev Drenker and Wolfgang Sommer with the aim of raising the standard of card magic in the German-speaking world.
One year earlier, the first card magic conference had taken place in El Escorial around Ascanio, Tamariz, Camilo, Varela, and Juan Anton. At both gatherings, topics in card magic are prepared and studied in small groups and then presented and discussed at the meeting itself. These initiatives arose independently of one another—it seemed that the time was simply ripe for such an exchange.
In Germany, the workshop was initially held twice a year and later settled into an annual rhythm. This year marked the 60th edition. The main themes focused on Paul LePaul, Gabi Pareras, the Torn and Restored Card, and historical card apparatus. For many years now, the group of 20 participants and the lectures have been coordinated by the secretary, Jörg Alexander.
What makes the German Card Workshop special is that, alongside professional expertise, interpersonal chemistry is considered essential. Over the years, the group has counted many distinguished members among its ranks. These included Carlhorst Meier, Erhard Liebenow, Piet Forton, Wolff von Keyserlingk, and Reinhard Teschner, who have sadly passed away. Among those who are active today are Roberto Giobbi, Wolfgang Moser, Friedrich Roitzsch, Denis Behr, Pit Hartling, Jan Logemann, Kurt Freitag, Vicente Noguera, Magic Christian, Hannes Freytag, and Axel Hecklau—to name just a few. Many of the members stay in contact throughout the year, exchange ideas, perform together, and collaborate on new concepts. Kirschbaum’s wonderful theater provides an ideal place to retreat for three days and immerse themselves fully in their shared passion. In addition to the technical contributions, the humorous asides are equally important and add greatly to the unique charm of the meeting.
I am delighted that in my first Magicana I am able to publish several effects by members of the Card Workshop. Founding member Reinhard Müller explains an intriguing routine based on the CATO principle; Helge Thun presents a complete stand-up routine in which a card travels from one deck to another; Denis Behr contributes a short but delightful gag featuring a smoking deck; Tino Plaz shares his “bill to instant soup,” which served as his closer for many years; and finally, the youngest member of the group, Moritz Mueller, offers several technical refinements for Bertram’s Tebe Change.
I hope you’ll enjoy this brief glimpse into the Card Workshop.
When Magicana relaunched in 1964, Charlie Miller hoped it would be “a storehouse wherein today’s magical greats keep their secrets.” Since then, it has featured material from magicians including Vernon, Goshman, Marlo, Tamariz, Walton, Hollingworth, and Elmsley. If you have original magic to share and want to add your name to that list, email editors@geniimagazine.com.