Kraftwerk
dal 9/4/2012 al 16/4/2012
Segnalato da
9/4/2012
Kraftwerk
The Museum of Modern Art - MoMA, New York
Retrospective 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8. A Complete Experience with Music, Ambient Sound, Video, Set Design, and Performance. Each evening will consist of a live of works from one of the group's 8 albums, created over 4 decades, followed by a selection of original compositions adapted to showcase both their historical contributions and contemporary influences on sound and image culture. A presentation of Kraftwerk's historical audio and visual material will be on view in the new MoMA PS1.
Entire Repertoire of Eight Conceptual Albums Performed Live Over Eight Consecutive
Evenings from April 10 to 17
The Museum of Modern Art presents its first time-based
artist retrospective with Kraftwerk–Retrospective 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8, performed live on eight
consecutive evenings from April 10 through 17, by Kraftwerk, the avant-garde electronic music
pioneers. Each evening will consist of a live performance, in the Museum’s Donald B. and
Catherine C. Marron Atrium, of works from one of the group’s eight albums, created over four
decades, followed by a selection of original compositions from their catalogue adapted specifically
for this exhibition’s format, to showcase both Kraftwerk’s historical contributions and
contemporary influences on sound and image culture. Kraftwerk–Retrospective 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 is
organized by Klaus Biesenbach, Chief Curator at Large at MoMA and Director of MoMA PS1, with
the assistance of Eliza Ryan, Curatorial Assistant, MoMA PS1.
The elaborate staging of the performances will combine sound and 3D images to present
more than 40 years of musical and technological innovation, with new improvisations and 3D
projections. The albums will be performed in chronological order: Autobahn (1974), Radio-
Activity (1975), Trans Europe Express (1977), The Man-Machine (1978), Computer World (1981),
Techno Pop (1986), The Mix (1991), and Tour de France (2003).
“Kraftwerk is an influential force not only in music, but also in visual culture,” says Mr.
Biesenbach. “Through their experimentation with how images and sound are shaped by the latest
recording and visualization tools, they have continuously anticipated the impact of technology on
everyday life, and have captured the human condition in an era of rapidly changing mobility and
telecommunication. Today, they remain vital to contemporary practice through their intersection
of popular culture, mass media, and artistic production. In Kraftwerk’s practice, all of the
components—melodic music and ambient sound, elaborate stage sets, live performance and
performance by robots, their trademark videos and logo-like still imagery, all conceived and
realized by the artists themselves—coalesce as one work of art.”
Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider began the Kraftwerk project in Düsseldorf, Germany, in
1970, setting up the pioneering Kling Klang studio, where all of Kraftwerk's albums were
conceived and composed. By the mid-1970’s they achieved international recognition for their
revolutionary “electro sound paintings” and their musical experimentation with tapes and
synthesizers. The compositions also featured beautiful distant melodies, multi-lingual vocals,
robotic rhythms, custom-made sequencers and vocoders, and computer-speech technology. Their
use of robots, among other innovations in live performance, illustrates Kraftwerk’s belief in the
respective contributions of people and machines in making music. The artists’ physical
surroundings—both natural and man-made—have heavily influenced both the sonic direction and
graphic identity of their eight concept albums, which draw on elements such as the noises of
transit or industry to create their repetitive mechanical melodies.
In recent years, starting with their performance at the Venice Biennale in 2005, Kraftwerk
has been invited into the visual arts context, festivals, and museums, most recently performing at
the museum Lenbachhaus Kunstbau in Munich. In contrast to all former presentations, where
Kraftwerk videos, visuals, or the “robots” were presented in a museum context but performances
were staged as concerts, MoMA is realizing a groundbreaking new display: the first synthetic
retrospective to present simultaneously and in one location the complex layers of music, sound,
videos, sets, and performance as a total work of art in MoMA’s main atrium.
Performance Schedule
Tuesday, April 10, 8:30 p.m. Autobahn (1974)
Wednesday, April 11, 8:30 p.m. Radio-Activity (1975)
Thursday, April 12, 8:30 p.m. Trans Europe Express (1977)
Friday, April 13, 10:00 p.m. The Man-Machine (1978)
Saturday April 14, 8:30 p.m. Computer World (1981)
Sunday, April 15, 8:30 p.m. Techno Pop (1986)
Monday, April 16, 8:30 p.m. The Mix (1991)
Tuesday, April 17, 10:00 p.m. Tour de France (2003)
Kraftwerk at MoMA PS1
As part of Kraftwerk–Retrospective 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8, a presentation of Kraftwerk’s historical audio
and visual material will be on view in the new MoMA PS1 Performance Dome at MoMA PS1, from April 10-May 14, 2012.
The exhibition is made possible by a partnership with Volkswagen of America.
Image: Man Machine. Image courtesy of Sprueth Magers, Berlin and London. © Kraftwerk
Press Contact:
Paul Jackson, (212) 708-9593, paul_jackson@moma.org
Margaret Doyle, (212) 408-6400, margaret_doyle@moma.org
The Museum of Modern Art MoMA
11 West 53 Street, New York, NY 10019
All performances are SOLD OUT