Jakob Streit


Jakob Streit was a Swiss writer, teacher and anthroposophist. Besides this, he worked as musician and choirmaster as well as conductor and dramaturg.

Biography

Jakob Streit was born in the Berner Oberland in Switzerland, the son of a watchmaker, and lived there for most of his life. He had four brothers and sisters and everyone helped to tend the family beehives, their cow and calf and their sheep.
He studied education at the teacher-training college in Bern, where his skills in music, education and literature were honed. He completed his musical education with Hans Klee, the father of artist Paul Klee.

Career

He began his career as a teacher of different age groups, in the course of which the many stories he told to the children were published as children's stories in over forty books. Many of these have been translated into English and other languages. His educational method, and particularly his music instruction drew heavily on the indications of Rudolf Steiner on Waldorf education.
After producing plays with children, he broadened his interest to amateur-theatre direction, in the course of which he inaugurated the William Tell festival plays in Interlaken and the Spiez Castle Plays. Having studied piano and organ, his work as a choir conductor led him to produce a succession of operas, including The Magic Flute and Orpheus and Euridice.
Questions of art, art history and culture occupied him all his life. After his retirement, he began to lecture in most of Europe, besides increasing the scope of his literary work. For many years, he was editor of the AVS-Mitteilungen, the newssheet of the Anthroposophische Vereinigung in der Schweiz, continuing with this until his death at 99 years of age.

Literary work

Books for children and young people

  • And There Was Light – From the Creation of the World to Noah's Ark Jakob Streit; Translated by Ekkehard Piening AWSNA 2006
  • Brother Francis – The Life of Francis of Assisi Jakob Streit, AWSNA 2013
  • Geron and Virtus – A Fateful Encounter of Two Youths: A German and a Roman, Jakob Streit; Translated by Nina Kuettel AWSNA 2006
  • Invisible Guardians – True Stories of Fateful Encounters Jakob Streit; Translated by Nina Kuettel AWSNA 2011
  • Journey to the Promised Land – The Path of the People of Israel from Abraham's Calling to David's Dream Jakob Streit; Translated by Donald Samson AWSNA 1999
  • Liputto – Stories of Gnomes and Trolls Jakob Streit; Translated by Nina J. Kuettel AWSNA 1999
  • Little Bee Sunbeam Jakob Streit; Translated by Nina Kuettel AWSNA 2010
  • Milon and the Lion Jakob Streit; Translated by Wolfgang Forsthofer and Auriol de Smidt. Floris Books 2011
  • Puck the Gnome Jakob Streit; Translated by Nina Kuettel AWSNA 2004
  • The Star Rider and Anna McLoon – Two Tales from Ireland Jakob Streit; Translated by Nina Kuettel AWSNA 2010
  • We Will Build a Temple – The Path of Israel from King Solomon to John the Baptist Jakob Streit; Translated by Donald Samson AWSNA 2004
  • What Animals Say to Each Other – 30 Nature Fables in Rhyme Jakob Streit; Kilian Beck AWSNA 2013 SBN 9781936367238
  • The Bee Book Jakob Streit AWSNA 2010
  • Three Knight Tales Jakob Streit; Translated by Nina Kuettel AWSNA 2012
  • Little Gnome Tenderroot by Jakob Streit, illustrated by Georges Feldmann and translated by Nina Keuttel. Waldorf Publications; 27 January 2014.
  • Beatuslegenden. Troxler, Bern 1940
  • Kindheitslegenden. Troxler, Bern 1941
  • Tiergeschichten. Atlantis, Zürich 1941
  • Dreikönigsbuch. Troxler, Bern 1951
  • Bergblumenmärchen. Atlantis, Zürich 1954
  • Kleine Schöpfungsgeschichte. Novalis, Freiburg im Breisgau 1956
  • Die Söhne Kains. Novalis, Freiburg im Breisgau 1959
  • Die schöne Magelone. Schweizerisches Jugendschriftenwerk, Zürich 1960
  • Von Zwergen und Wildmannli. SJW, Zürich 1965
  • Rösli von Stechelberg. SJW, Zürich 1968
  • Beatus, ein irischer Glaubensbote. SJW, Zürich 1968
  • Ich will dein Bruder sein. Freies Geistesleben, Stuttgart 1979
  • Der erste Weihnachtsbaum. Erzählungen. Novalis, Freiburg im Breisgau 1983
  • Ziehet hin ins gelobte Land. Freies Geistesleben, Stuttgart 1983
  • Tatatucks Reise. Freies Geistesleben, Stuttgart 1984
  • Louis Braille. Ein blinder Junge erfindet die Blindenschrift. Freies Geistesleben, Stuttgart 1987
  • Geschichten vom Schenken und Helfen des Sankt Nikolaus. Freies Geistesleben, Stuttgart 1989
  • Miriam zu Betlehem. Freies Geistesleben, Stuttgart 1989
  • Ich will dein Bruder sein. Legende. Freies Geistesleben, Stuttgart 1989
  • Die Zauberflöte. Freies Geistesleben, Stuttgart 1991
  • Zwerg Wurzelfein. Urachhaus, Stuttgart 1992
  • Die Geschichte der zwei Jesusknaben. Die Pforte, Basel 1992
  • Im Rosenhaus. Urachhaus, Stuttgart 1992
  • Ajuk und die Eisbären. Freies Geistesleben, Stuttgart 1993
  • Das Osterlamm. Legende. Freies Geistesleben, Stuttgart 1993
  • Nagick, das Eichhörnchen. AT, Aarau 1993
  • Puck und der Regenbogen. Drei Zwerge besuchen das Menschenreich. Freies Geistesleben, Stuttgart 1996
  • Odilie. Botin des Lichts. Freies Geistesleben, Stuttgart 1997
  • Columban. Ein Kämpfer für das irische Christentum. Urachhaus, Stuttgart 2002
  • Königskind und Hirtenkind. Die Geschichte der beiden Jesusknaben. Urachhaus, Stuttgart 2003

Non-fiction

  • Sun and Cross – From Megalithic Culture to Early Christianity in Ireland Jakob Streit; Translated by Hugh Latham, Floris Books 2004
  • Erziehungskunst und Elternhaus. Die Kommenden, Freiburg im Breisgau 1954
  • *Newly published as: Erziehung, Schule, Elternhaus. Erziehungsfragen und Erziehungshilfen. Novalis, Schaffhausen 1978
  • Das Märchen im Leben des Kindes. Brügger, Meiringen 1964
  • *Neuausgabe als: Warum Kinder Märchen brauchen. Verlag am Goetheanum, Dornach 1985
  • Waldorfpädagogik in öffentlichen Schulen. Herder, Freiburg im Breisgau 1976
  • Vom Werden der Welt. Novalis, Schaffhausen 1981
  • Comics oder Märchen? Gift oder Nahrung für die Seelen unserer Kinder. Verein für ein erweitertes Heilwesen, Bad Liebenzell 2. A. 1984

Other

  • Therese Keller – Porträt einer Puppenspielerin. Zytglogge, Gümligen 1974
  • Anna Samweber: Aus meinem Leben. Die Pforte, Basel 1981
  • Parzival. Der Weg zum heiligen Gral. Retold by Jakob Streit to illustrations by Werner Diedrich. Die Pforte, Basel 1997
  • Wegspuren. Poetry. Pforte, Dornach 2000

Radio plays and broadcasts

  • Beatus, ein irischer Glaubensbote. Radio DRS, Bern 1950
  • Der vierte König. DRS, Bern 1952
  • Clara von Rappard. DRS, Bern 1957

Plays

  • Rösli vom Stechelberg. The Freie Marionettenbühne Wengen performs this as a puppet play in 4 acts, Premiere 25 December 2002.