exploratorium berlin

The exploratorium berlin was founded in Berlin-Kreuzberg in 2004 as a “centre for improvised music and creative music education” and is the central project of the Lilli Friedemann Stiftung.

The exploratorium berlin celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2024.

History

The exploratorium berlin was founded in May 2004 by Matthias Schwabe, initially as a one-man operation on a 240 square metre floor in the Sarotti courtyards.

The founding idea was to create a place that was explicitly and exclusively dedicated to musical improvisation. The three pillars for this were
– Concerts
– Weekend workshops & regular courses
– a monthly open stage.

The concept met with a great response and the number of events increased, so that by the fifth anniversary in 2009, a team of four was already at work and the space had been expanded to 534 square metres.

Reinhard Gagel joined the exploratorium in 2012 and established the Theory & Research department as the fourth area, which includes a specialised library and an archive. Mathias Maschat took over this area in 2019.

Another topic has developed naturally over the years: Regular courses became permanent ensembles. This was the fulfilment of a great wish from the founding period: Improvisation ensembles should become as commonplace as chamber music ensembles, choirs, orchestras or bands. So far, this is only the case in the exploratorium and not (yet!) at all music schools and universities, but at least a start has been made!
Since 2020, Ursula Seeger in particular has been building up the “Junges explo” area as a fifth pillar: Regular courses, weekend and holiday workshops, offers for school classes and parent-child offers are becoming increasingly popular and have become an important part of the work.

Since June 2023, the exploratorium berlin has been based at Zossener Straße 24 in Berlin-Kreuzberg.

Philosophy: Why improvisation?

Improvisation offers us the opportunity to invent music ourselves, without sheet music. The special thing about this form of creativity is that it takes place in a group. Just like in a good conversation, the players inspire each other and can develop ideas that they would not have come up with on their own.
The exploratorium focuses on free improvisation, which does not require scales, harmony or rhythm patterns. The sound itself is the musical material.

Learning to improvise freely means here: Gaining creative experience, learning to understand music “from the inside out” and getting involved in the musical flow.

This requires alertness in the moment and intensive listening to the other players as well as to the collective musical process.

Free improvisation means acting independently in every moment, contributing your own ideas and at the same time acting as a collective, taking responsibility for the whole.

Learning this means learning for life.
Experiencing this in concert means being part of a special adventure.
Improvisation bietet uns die Möglichkeit selbst Musik zu erfinden, und zwar ganz ohne Noten. Das Besondere an dieser Form der Kreativität ist, dass sie in der Gruppe stattfindet. Wie in einem guten Gespräch inspirieren sich die Spieler*innen gegenseitig und können so Ideen entwickeln, auf die sie alleine nicht gekommen wären.
Im exploratorium steht die sogenannte Freie Improvisation im Mittelpunkt, die keine Skalen, Harmonie- oder Rhythmus-Schemata braucht. Der Klang an sich ist das musikalische Material.

Frei improvisieren(d) lernen heißt hier: Gestaltungserfahrungen sammeln, Musik „von innen heraus“ verstehen lernen und sich einlassen auf den musikalischen Fluss.

Das erfordert Wachheit im Augenblick und intensives Lauschen auf die Mitspieler ebenso wie auf den kollektiven musikalischen Prozess.

Frei improvisieren, das bedeutet: in jedem Moment selbstverantwortlich handeln, Eigenes einbringen und zugleich als Kollektiv agieren, Verantwortung für das Ganze übernehmen.

Dies zu lernen, heißt fürs Leben zu lernen.
Dies im Konzert zu erleben, heißt Teil eines besonderen Abenteuers zu sein.

Download programmes

Please note that the programmes are only available in German.

Address

exploratorium berlin 
Zossener Straße 24
10961 Berlin (Kreuzberg)

Marheinekeplatz (Bus 248, 20m)
U Gneisenaustraße (Bus 140, U7, 200m)
U Mehringdamm (Bus M19, U6, U7, 900m)

Office Hours

Mo – Di 10.00 – 14.00
Mi 14.00 – 18.00
Do – Fr 10.00 – 14.00

Contact

030 84 72 10 52
info@exploratorium-berlin.de