Almost 400 years of learning echo from these walls. This is the Friedrich-Ebert-Gymnasium a Hamburg institution. It stands proudly on Alter Postweg. Its history is rich. It began as a princely Latin school in 1628. Imagine the students then. Their lessons were different. Their world was different.
The Friedrich-Ebert-Gymnasium wasn’t always known by this name. It was once the Gymnasium for Boys in Harburg. In 1968 it received its current name. This honored Friedrich Ebert the first president of the Weimar Republic. A significant change also happened around that time. The school became coeducational.
The school’s fame goes beyond its academic achievements. Its Friedrich-Ebert-Halle is legendary. This is where the Beatles recorded their first professional tracks. They backed Tony Sheridan in 1961. This hall wasn’t just for music. It hosted TV shows by Peter Frankenfeld. The Deutsche Grammophon even used it for classical music recordings.
The Friedrich-Ebert-Gymnasium has three main sectors. There is the humanistic sector with Latin from grade 5. Then there’s the musical sector. Each class forms its own orchestra or ensemble. Lastly there’s the MINT sector. This focuses on math information technology science and technology. The school has also had foreign exchange programs with several countries including the US. Its American partner school is Kirkwood High School in St Louis.
In grade 8 students choose a specialization. Options include Greek Spanish dramatic play or a science IT practicum. The humanistic sector was planned to be discontinued in 2012 due to lack of interest. Latin and Greek however remain offered in grades 6 and 8. The school has been renovated since 2009. It is aiming for a modern image. This is part of a project called Ebert 2012.
The school introduced a new profile system in 2009-2010. This was for grade 11. The same year it introduced Abitur after twelve years. This created a double examination year. Currently five profiles are offered. These include linguistic musical history geographic-biologic and scientific profiles.
Each year the school publishes a yearbook. The Jahresbericht des Friedrich-Ebert-Gymnasiums is published around December 6th. Since 2006 it’s been printed in color. Previously it was monochrome except for class photos. It costs 10 euros. A student newspaper Der heiße FEGer used to be published. It was a pun on the school’s abbreviation and the term for a sexually attractive woman. However it has not been updated since around 2008. A satire magazine Quadratdampfer MS Kay Anker launched in 2009 is also noteworthy. It’s created by a single student. It is popular but is likely to be shut down.
So here we stand before a building that has witnessed centuries of learning. It’s a place of music history and innovation. A place where the Beatles made history. The Friedrich-Ebert-Gymnasium is more than a school. It’s a living testament to Hamburg’s rich past.