spreeklänge "A musical path about and along the water"

Eleven international composers were invited to compose new works for specific locations along Berlin’s largest waterway—as a response to the respective geographic site and urban environment, as well as to local and global knowledge of water and multispecies ecosystems.

The “Spreeklänge” create immersive soundscapes while also addressing critical reflections, such as questions regarding the spiritual significance of water in indigenous communities and the rights and dignity of rivers and non-human beings.

The acoustic space spans from Philippine stalactite caves to water sounds perceptible only through touch, to encounters with diverse bat species along the Fauler Spree. Utopias are staged with singers on rowboats, field names are recited, or a “sound forest” is performed by schoolchildren.

The performances take place around the river: along the riverside path, on boats on the water, or even on the other side of the river, under bridges, or in open spaces. The individual compositions relate to the respective location, transforming it and thereby altering its perception. They are interventions in the everyday, normal use of public space.

Each work has its own specific format. Small concerts, music-theatrical interventions, and installations—often involving local communities and groups of students—come together to form a multifaceted contemporary soundscape for a mobile audience that can move from situation to situation with open senses, listening to the sounds, the river, and the living creatures.

Composers

Peter Ablinger, Cathy van Eck, Em'kal Eyongakpa, Stephan Froleyks, Carlos Gutiérrez & Tatiana López, Susie Ibarra, Liza Lim, Kate Milligan, Trond Reinholdtsen, Annette Schmucki, Kristine Tjøgersen

Performers

ELISION Ensemble, Die Maulwerker / Fernanda Farah, Karin Hellqvist / Jennifer Torrence / Evelina Dembacke / Ellen Jerstad / Lars A. Skoglund, Christian Kesten, Jake Landau / Bilawa Ade Respati, Projekt Selbstgebaute Musik / Students of the Berggruen Gymnasium / Phusiris de los Andes Ensemble / Students of the UdK/FU Berlin, Frauenchor der Künste Berlin, Students of the Schinkel Elementary School, and others

Artistic Direction

Julia Gerlach, Daniel Ott

Route

Rosengarten/Wintersteinstraße – Caprivibrücke – Schlossbrücke – Charlottenburg Palace Park – Jungfernheide S-Bahn Bridge – Allotment Garden Colony – Charlottenburg Weir/Lock – Rudolf-Wissell-Brücke A 100 – Old Siemens Railway/Fürstenbrunner Graben – Allotment Garden Colony – Industrial Area – Renaturalized Old River Channels – Rohrdamm Bridge – Allotment Garden Colony