COLLAPSE

Frieder Nagel creates an immersive sound space in the former delivery zone of the deserted Kaufhof in Nuremberg, together with light artist Stephan Scheiderer and acclaimed media artist Alexander Trattler from the elektropastete collective. Dark, gloomy and abandoned - what was originally intended for continuous operation has been lying idle for a year. Where trucks previously drove in and out every second, the atmosphere is now spooky and reminiscent of apocalyptic science fiction. The abstract electro-acoustic composition fluctuates between euphoric, almost sacred music and threatening noise, which challenges the boundaries of the room and the listeners.

Passers-by can reflect themselves onto the outside walls of the former shopping centre within an interactive and re-active led screen created by Trattler, that gets both modulated by the movements of the audience as well as the frequencies of Frieder Nagel´s music. At the same time spectators can enter the former delivery hall to get literally inside of the abstract audiovisual installation finding themselves in the middle of a complex arrangement of automated lights reflected on a variety of mirrors and poles installed by Stephan Scheiderer and the massive waves of the sound system itself.

Nagel is known for playing in unusual places. At the Paris Music Festival he created electronic soundscapes specifically for the historical exhibits of the Musée des Arts et Metiér, he composed for the 500th anniversary of Magdeburg Cathedral or installed audiovisual art in treetops and backyards during the pandemic. The work, created specifically for ZUKUNFTSMUSIK, can be understood as a commentary on the current political situation, located between rupture and departure. It combines utopian visions with aesthetics of the contemporary club scene  - on one of the most sophisticated sound systems of today, the Vero VX by british sound manufacturer Funktion-One.

„Zukunftsmusik – Transformation des Kaufhof-Areals mittels Kunst und Kultur“ wird durch den Freistaat Bayern im Bayerischen Städteförderprogramm gefördert.