Witold / Nico / (Jaws)

This comparison of musical works of different genres from the 1970s is made up of Witold Lutoslwaski's "Preludes and Fugue," for 13 string players, written between 1970 and ‘72, and "Desertshore," Nico's third solo album, released in 1970. Both works are interpreted by the Solistenensemble Kaleidoskop, together with the artist and singer ANIKA. These two pieces seem to have nothing in common and yet are two contradictory descriptions of the world of their time. What happens when such diverse works from different cultural productions are aesthetically juxtaposed?

Lutosławski seeks artistic expression in the stark contrast between aleatoricism and extreme complexity in seven different and overlapping prologues, i.e. preludes, which precede a large-scale fugue. "Desertshore," arranged and produced by John Cale in 1970, is stylistically situated somewhere between gothic, folk rock, and Romanticism. Taking the form of a song cycle, the songs make use of symbols of German Romantic traditions. It is dark and disturbing, with vocals that intensely penetrate the music and at the same time remain strangely far removed from it.

We are getting closer!

Over four long summer weekends, we will once again open radialsystem to the public and cordially invite you to the concerts, installations, and performances by and with the Solistenensemble Kaleidoskop, Hanno Leichtmann, Peter Cusack, Sandhya Daemgen, Deva Schubert, Guerilla Architects and Alicia Agustín, Sasha Waltz & Guests, Tilman O'Donnell and Mikkel Ploug, Juan Dominguez and Wojtek Blecharz.
The different rooms of the building, the Spree Terrace, and the covered Deck are all to be discovered in a different way than before. Over the past few weeks, we have come to learn how important and yet fragile the shared experience of live performances is. In order to ensure that everyone feels safe and at ease at our relaunch, we want to allow for plenty of space and time for these encounters to unfold onsite. Therefore, together with the participating artists and ensembles, we have developed artistic formats that foster unusual aesthetic experiences and through which radialsystem can also be encountered in a new way.