Manuel Göttsching is a pioneering guitarist, electronic musician and composer with a career spanning over 40 years. First known in the early 1970s as a founder of the German cosmic rockers Ash Ra Tempel, Göttsching earned a reputation for his atmosherpic and delicate guitar work. Initially including Klaus Schulze as well as Harmut Enke, Ash Ra Tempel’s spaced out explorations deconstructed the architecture of rock music, alternating between transcendent and shambolic tendencies.
On Saturday, February 4th, Manuel Göttschnig will be performing at the Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW) as part of an evening that is co-presented by CTM and transmediale. Over and above the notable visual accompaniment by New York’s Joshua Light Show, there is a special historical fiction surrounding Göttsching’s appearance at the HKW, an iconic venue of Berlin’s landscape that is instantly remarkable for its spacious and very open room-design and its hallmark curved roof.
Completed in 1957 as a gift from the United States and designed by American architect Hugh Stubbins, the building design foresaw a suspended roof supported by just two columns, an idea that reflected the spirit of an age that cherished the ideals of organic building. Architects were divided in their opinions about the structure; some were enthusiastic, others vehemently opposed it. „Never before has a suspended roof been constructed with such an expensive and clumsy structure.” - gives an example of Frei Otto’s stinging judgement on the building during its construction.
Boasting a full performance schedule as of its opening, the HKW on November 11 1979 the HKW hosted a fashion happening featuring Berlin designers Claudi Skoda and Tabea Blumenschein in its main hall. Entitled "Big Birds", the event was supported by a live soundtrack specially-composed and performed by Manuel Göttsching.
Göttsching performed his heavy metal-inspired electronic soundtrack only on analog synth gear that evening, and amplified its power through a sound system that he had alleged purchased from Pink Floyd. Rumour has it that Göttsching’s performance that night was so powerful as to cause concert officials to worry as to the roof's structural integrity. The building subsequently closed its public activities while reassessing what precautions to take. The move proved quite wise, as shortly thereafter, in May 1980, the roof indeed collapsed - killing one journalist that got caught under the debris. How big of a disaster, then, did Göttsching’s fateful performance potentially avert?
While the HKW has since been reinforced and renovated up to modern safety standards, expect to walk away with no less of a powerful impression from Göttsching’s performance, for which he will be bringing out his full arsenal of original analogue equipment, to recreate a soundtrack similar to that which he performed back in 1979.
Göttsching will also be performing analog-only music relating to his own compositions of that same time period, such as the celebrated Dream and Desire album of 1977.
Manuel Göttsching's performance is the last of a three-part concert series entitled The Ghosts In the Machine, co-presented by CTM and transmediale. The series sees three different musicians collaborate with New York's fabled Joshua Light Show, an audiovisual project that has performed with musical luminaries such as Jimi Hendrix and Jefferson Airplane. Performing in Germany for the very first time, The Joshua Light Show is soaked in the psychedelic iconography of rock culture, and is distinct for its "wet show" of coloured oils mixed and manipulated to create magical, biomorphic forms. The project held a longtime residency at New York's historic Fillmore venue in the late 1960s, and also appeared at Woodstock, Carnegie Hall, the Lincoln Center, Centre Georges-Pompidou, the Tate Liverpool and more.
Performance information:
// Saturday February 4, 2012 The Ghosts in the Machine Joshua Light Show (US) featuring Manuel Göttsching (DE) Time: 9pm Venue: Haus der Kulturen der Welt, John-Foster-Dulles-Allee 10 10557 Berlin Tickets: via amiando.com
As part of the Ghosts in the Machine series co-presented by CTM.12 and transmediale, the Joshua Light Show will perform two other concerts at the HKW:
// Wednesday February 1, 2012 The Ghosts in the Machine Joshua Light Show (US) featuring Supersilent (NO) Time: 9pm Venue: Haus der Kulturen der Welt, John-Foster-Dulles-Allee 10 10557 Berlin Tickets: via amiando.com
// Friday February 3, 2012 The Ghosts in the Machine Joshua Light Show (US) featuring Oneohtrix Point Never (US) Time: 9pm Venue: Haus der Kulturen der Welt, John-Foster-Dulles-Allee 10 10557 Berlin Tickets: via amiando.com
