Je parle l'Allemand (Editions Atlas, 1988)

[jeffers]

In a thread about FSI, reineke mentioned a course called Je parle l'Allemand, with the merest hint of information about the course:

I got the expression for free from TV shows. If anyone is looking for something more modern but still substantial, try Je parle l’Allemand [I (can) Speak German] by Editions Atlas, 1988. The audio is 32 hours long.

That's the whole post, and as far as I could see nobody else said anything about it. The source is: https://forum.language-learners.org/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=3901&start=30

This of course got me searching down the rabbithole of the web, and I found a little bit more about the course.

I found that it was recommended by speakeasy in the German group, but again with no further information. Source: https://forum.language-learners.org/viewtopic.php?t=5074&start=150 It's always interesting when this forum is one of the top few search results.

According to what I think is a Chinese piracy website, it had 96 booklets and 32 cassettes. However, the page was full of dodgy links my work laptop wouldn't trust.

I found an advertisement for the course here:
https://www.ina.fr/ina-eclaire-actu/publicite/pub3774419045/editions-atlas-je-parle-l-allemand-methode-de-langue-cassette
The advert also mentions that they also have courses in English, Spanish and Italian (so big surprise).

And that's about the only useful information I could find. Does anyone know anything more about it?


Edit: here are photos of the front and back of the first volume:

986705515.jpg

986705516.jpg

[guyome]

You can find quite a few pictures by searching on leboncoin.fr:
https://www.leboncoin.fr/livres/2454318401.htm
https://www.leboncoin.fr/livres/2497554530.htm
https://www.leboncoin.fr/livres/2483232712.htm
https://www.leboncoin.fr/livres/2595521532.htm

96 lessons, 32 tapes + 4 dictation tapes. The course seems to make a generous use of drawings and pictures.

You can also find the English, Italian and Spanish courses there. It looks like they follow the same format.
https://www.leboncoin.fr/livres/2499959290.htm
https://www.leboncoin.fr/livres/2284027552.htm

I remember growing up in the 90s, it seemed like these "buy one piece each week" things were all the rage. Boat/plane/train models, book series, language courses, "build your own human skeleton", they were everywhere.

[Slowpoke]

I'm so curious! I'd love to hear what those recordings are.

[Le Baron]

I'm so curious! I'd love to hear what those recordings are.

Here's something more annoying. A photo of all the cassettes for sale (€80):

[finknottles]

Based on those pictures of the course, it looks almost exactly the same as the Italian "De Agostini" courses (which were also reprinted by Globo as "Curso de Idiomas" with Portuguese as the base language). Perhaps this is the French reprint? If so, I imagine that the recordings would be exactly the same if those editions are any easier to track down.

[guyome]

That would make sense. It seems Editions Atlas became part of the De Agostini group in 1987.

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%89ditions_Atlas

[guyome]

I found a rather inexpensive copy of the course at Leboncoin and am now the happy(?) owner of a complete set of Je parle l'allemand. Spending these 20€ was fully worth it, if only for the vintage '80s smell that emanates from the glossy paper and the cassettes. But in making this foolish(?) purchase, I also obeyed a more concrete design, namely the desire to revive my very rusty high-school German.

Speakeasy's review of L'allemand facile (Je parle l'allemand 2.0) and its mention of the audio being 100% in German sold me on it. That and the fact that I'm expecting the course to present declensions at a rather leisurely pace, giving me plenty of practice and time to master(?) one case before introducing another. Yiddish has considerably simplified the declension system and I'll need time and practice to adjust the Standard German in this regard.

jeffers, if you're interested I can post pictures and digitise (some of) the audio. Let me know!

[guyome]

Here are more details about the course, as well as links to digitised portions of it.

Lesson 01 https://ufile.io/6gr043vp
Lesson 02 https://ufile.io/e44ch1vd
Lesson 03 https://ufile.io/mvj3jfvu
Lesson 34 https://ufile.io/h2i4r0om
Lesson 35 https://ufile.io/z7cd42lz
Lesson 36 https://ufile.io/35nto3t1
Lesson 70 https://ufile.io/mzt4yfnh
Lesson 71 https://ufile.io/b0c36tm6
Lesson 72 https://ufile.io/ogo654xn
Lesson 81 https://ufile.io/82afw7dh

Cassette 01 (lessons 01-03) https://ufile.io/21hgh3zr
Cassette 12 (lessons 34-36) https://ufile.io/8zbqak8b
Cassette 24 (lessons 70-72) https://ufile.io/y6pz8okp
Cassette 27 (lessons 79-81) https://ufile.io/exgx06bs (sound quality is not as good as the other cassettes)

Lessons 1-72
A) Konversation (recorded)
Around 4/5 conversations, to be studied in various ways. There is a color scheme to indicate what the student is expected to do: red frame is for listening; yellow is for repetition; green is for questions; blue is for answers.
Many conversations are framed in both red and yellow, meaning they are played once without pauses and once again with pauses for repetition. But quite a few are for listening only.
They are generally followed by questions (with pauses for answering and repeating the answer after it has been played).

B) Vokabular
A German-French list of the words introduced in the conversations.

C) Dialog (recorded) or Lesestück (not recorded)
As far as I can see the dialogs are merely a recombination of earlier elements, they do not introduce new material. The dialog is played once without pauses, and then once again with pauses for repetition.

D) Lebendiges Deutsch (recorded)
Seems to be geared towards natural, everyday speech. Uses words not introduced in the lesson. The material is played once without pauses, and then once again with pauses for repetition.

E) Übungen
Three short exercises, around 20/30 questions altogether. Answers are given in the fascicle.

F) Grammatik
Grammar explanations.

Test
Ten multiple choice questions. Answers in the next fascicle.

Lessons 73-96
A) Konversation (recorded)
A lengthy extract from a movie, together with notes.

B) Deutsch im Beruf
A dialog (recorded) set up in the workplace, together with grammar explanations and exercises.

C) Idiomatisches Deutsch (recorded)
Idiomatic turns of phrases and expressions, with notes.

D) Deutsch üben
Several exercices.

E) Lesestück
A lengthy extract from a German literary work. Bilingual German-French.

Fascicles 18-36-54-72 are for revision, meaning that they may contain conversations but the other sections are replaced by exercises testing your knowledge of the material introduced so far.

[jeffers]

Here are more details about the course, as well as links to digitised portions of it.

Lesson 01 https://ufile.io/6gr043vp
Lesson 02 https://ufile.io/e44ch1vd
Lesson 03 https://ufile.io/mvj3jfvu
Lesson 34 https://ufile.io/h2i4r0om
Lesson 35 https://ufile.io/z7cd42lz
Lesson 36 https://ufile.io/35nto3t1
Lesson 70 https://ufile.io/mzt4yfnh
Lesson 71 https://ufile.io/b0c36tm6
Lesson 72 https://ufile.io/ogo654xn
Lesson 81 https://ufile.io/82afw7dh

Cassette 01 (lessons 01-03) https://ufile.io/21hgh3zr
Cassette 12 (lessons 34-36) https://ufile.io/8zbqak8b
Cassette 24 (lessons 70-72) https://ufile.io/y6pz8okp
Cassette 27 (lessons 79-81) https://ufile.io/exgx06bs (sound quality is not as good as the other cassettes)

This looks interesting, but the website the files are saved on requires me to complete offers such as "download and install Opera" in order to download one file.

[guyome]

Weird, I don't know where that would come from.

I uploaded the files elsewhere, let me know if this works for you.

https://www.hostize.com/v/dTOEHfFw30/fascicule-01-pdf
https://www.hostize.com/v/mTiVlt5oyy/fascicule-02-pdf
https://www.hostize.com/v/lw3xhpB_2C/fascicule-03-pdf
https://www.hostize.com/v/3CkabnZQJF/fascicule-34-pdf
https://www.hostize.com/v/vMVOCaSp3E/fascicule-35-pdf
https://www.hostize.com/v/KOf-bjniZi/fascicule-36-pdf
https://www.hostize.com/v/GGwHz6MMEH/fascicule-70-pdf
https://www.hostize.com/v/WyWdQuBMlZ/fascicule-71-pdf
https://www.hostize.com/v/ELkLTlh09U/fascicule-72-pdf
https://www.hostize.com/v/u49V-7rJTZ/fascicule-81-pdf