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The Week in Germany: Culture August, 25 2006 Industrial Culture: David Byrne Opens Ruhrtriennale in Bochum Talking Head David Byrne opened the 2006 season of the Ruhrtriennale with a concert in a century-old steel factory in which he was accompanied by the Duisberg Philharmonic. Twenty-five thousand people filled Bochum’s Jahrhunderthalle and the square in front of it to hear Byrne and the German orchestra weave “sonic tapestries of almost Wagnerian dimensions” out of classics pop hits like “Psycho Killer,” “Road to Nowhere,” according to the Süddeutsche Zeitung.
Byrne, who is known for the intellectual and avant-garde sensibilities he injected into familiar pop formats with the Talking Heads, was featured in the Ruhrtriennale’s “Century of Song” series, which explores the history of the pop song. In addition to Talking Heads hits, country duets with opener Joe Henry, and songs from his Imelda Marcos musical, the set list included a cover of one prominent “Italian songwriter” as well: Byrne and Co. performed “Un di felice,” the aria from Verdi’s La Traviata.
The annual festival in Germany’s most densely populated megalopolis, the Ruhrgebiet, will continue through mid October featuring a challenging program of performances, concerts, and readings. In addition to luminaries such as Byrne, the American performance artist Laurie Anderson, and the author Günter Grass, one of the star attractions of the Ruhrtriennale is the venues. Shuttered industrial sites from the steel and coal industries that once defined the Ruhrgebiet were creatively retooled into performance spaces for the first Triennale in 2002. In many of the venues, cranes, bellows, and other industrial relics have been preserved and integrated into the stage concept. These projects helped Essen, one of the cities that makes up the Ruhrgebiet,
win the title of European Capital of Culture in 2010. Links: |
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