Kosmische Musik

Kosmische Musik is the genre of experimental electronic music that was born in Germany in late 1960s-early 1970s; the term often ref

Kosmische Musik is the genre of experimental electronic music that was born in Germany in late 1960s-early 1970s; the term often refers to the whole German electronic and progressive rock scene of the same period. The term Kosmische Musik was coined by Edgar Froese of Tangerine Dream to refer to man's outlook to the universe as the main theme of their music.

In the mid-1950s, music had taken a turn towards electronic avant-garde in academic contexts. In late 1960s, German rock bands began to react against the post-WWII cultural vacuum in their country and tending to reject Anglo-American popular culture in favour of creating their own more radical and experimental new German culture. The first major German rock festival was held in 1968 at Essen. Like their American and British counterparts, German rock musicians played a kind of psychedelic rock. In contrast, however, there was no attempt to reproduce the effects of drugs, but rather an innovative fusion of jazz, free-jazz and the electronic avant-garde. That same year, 1968, saw the foundation of the Zodiak Free Arts Lab in Berlin by Hans-Joachim Roedelius, Klaus Schulze and Conrad Schnitzler, which further popularized the psychedelic rock sound in the German mainstream. In 1968, Can was formed by two former students of Karlheinz Stockhausen, while the following year saw Kluster (later Cluster) begin recording keyboard-based instrumental music. In 1970-1971, the bands Tangerine Dream, Popol Vuh and Faust began to use electronic synthesizers and advanced production. Artists like Ash Ra Tempel and Popol Vuh emphasized spiritual and religious themes; others, such as the Kraftwerk, and Klaus Schulze in some works, used to develop themes relevant to the relationship between man, science and technology. In 1972, two albums incorporated the new electronic German sounds with Asian sounds: Popol Vuh's In Den Gaerten Pharaos and Deuter's Aum. Can, NEU!, Kluster, Amon Düül II, La Dusseldorf, Faust, Conrad Schnitzler experimented with avant-garde free-form styles. Holger Czukay, Cluster, Harmonia explored some forms of minimalism and Ambient music. Beginning from mid-late 1970s, the genre contributed to the birth and evolution of Ambient music, World music and New Age music, indeed British artist Brian Eno worked with Cluster and Harmonia in a few albums.