Cologne saves historic Stockhausen studio

The WDR electronic studio where Karlheinz Stockhausen drove numerous avant-garde breakthroughs has been saved from demolition by the city of Cologne, which has pledged to preserve it in perpetuity.

City of cologne Press Release
23.10.2023
Electronic music studio of WDR changes ownership
Mayor and WDR Intendent sign transfer agreement
The electronic music studio of WDR, cradle of electronic music, changes owners. The transfer agreement was signed by Mayor Henriette Reker and WDR-intendant Tom Buhrow, WDR hands over the legendary studio (SEM), where Karlheinz Stockhausen and numerous other internationally significant composers of New Music worked in the 1960s and 70s. The agreement seals the permanent future of SEM in Cologne.

Tom Buhrow: “With the studio of electronic music, WDR made cultural history.” I’m very pleased that this world-renowned cultural asset keeps its home in cologne and will be a public, creative meeting place in the future. “
Mayor Henriette Reker: “The electronic music studio of WDR started already in the 1950s, which most recently since ‘Can’ from cologne and ‘Kraftwerk’ from Düsseldorf has influenced generations of artists, for example ‘Pink Floyd’ or the Beatles. Electronic music can’t be thought away from neither new music nor pop music, and its core lies in cologne . The city of cologne is proud to fill the studio with new life and carry on the cultural heritage. We plan to make the SEM for contemporary musicians and the audience in its cultural and historical importance and its value for experimental electronic music experienceable and playable at a new location. This step strengthens the music city cologne in one of its special artistic profiles: electronic music. “
Minister Ina Brandes represented the state of North Rhine-Westphalia as the second main sponsor of the planned permanent site Zamus 2.0/SEM. The Minister of Culture and Science: “It is good and right that the studio for electronic music of the WDR in North Rhine-Westphalia will remain and will be available as an experimentation, production and presentation facility to contemporary composers and artists. We are adding a historically significant and at the same time highly current mosaic stone to the music land of North Rhine-Westphalia. “
The city of cologne, WDR and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, together with the “Cologne Society for Old Music e.V.” and “ON – Neue Musik cologne e.V.”, are planning the studio at one location together with the “Center for Old Music cologne ” (Zamus) for musicians and the interested public and to make use of it. For this purpose, the city council cologne had adopted the concept “Zamus 2.0/SEM” in February 2022 and has approved growing annual subsidies for expansion and operation of up to 676,000 euros for Zamus and 295,000 euros for SEM (values from 2026). The city and the country are in close exchange with the “ON – Neue Musik cologne e.V.” about the permanent sponsorship of the studio. At the moment, the city of cologne together with the cooperation partners is examining suitable locations for the permanent operation of the “Zamus 2.0/SEM”. The reconstruction and operation will be partly funded by the city and the country.

Background information:
The world famous studio for electronic music of WDR was opened in 1953 under the artistic direction of Herbert Eimert. In the following decades, numerous internationally outstanding works have been created that made music history: “Song of the Young” by Karlheinz Stockhausen, “Epitaph für Aikichi Kuboyama” by Herbert Eimert, “Kontakte” or “Microfonie I/II” by Karlheenz Stockhaasen, “La Légende d’Eer” by Iannis Xenakis and “Shanti” by Jean-Claude Eloy are just some of the most famous Examples from many works. The aesthetic and technical discoveries of the studio have had a great impact not only on contemporary composing, but also on musical pop culture. For example, the quadrophonic room sound control of the group “Pink Floyd” was already foreseen years ago in the Electronic Music Studio of WDR and made internationally known.
Parallel to the transfer contract, the city of cologne also took over the lease agreement for the building in Cologne-Ossendorf, where the studio is today, from WDR as an interim solution until the reopening in a new place. This prevented demolition and took a first important step towards continuation and restarting.