Chris Franke

Texto dum certo Jonathan Miller, datado de fevereiro/março de 1996, constando do encarte de relançamento de “Pergamon” (1986), e demonstrando q independente de sistemas políticos algumas coisas pouco mudam:

“Following two years of negociation, Tangerine Dream were invited to play two concerts at the Palast der Republik in former East Berlin on 31st January 1980 – the firts Western rock group to do so, presumably because the instrumental nature of their music was not viewed as being ‘politically dangerous’ by e communist authorities. Tickets reputedly changed hands for up to $125 on the black market, such was the Eastern Bloc’s hunger for rock music at the time!

As Froese remembers: ‘The Palast der Republik was where parliament sessions were held and importante political speeches made, so we had to agree not to make any political stataments and just play music – nothing that would colide with the political system. Since it was the first concert of a Western band in East Berlin and in such a high profile place, all the international press were outside with cameras everywhere, because 80% of the tickets were given away to officials and organisations connected with the East German government. The remaining 20% sold out in about five minutes.

‘About half an hour prior to the show there was a very delicate moment because 900 people were pressing against the venue’s huge glass windows trying to get in. Inside, we had to make a decision: Did we want lots of publicity by allowing the windows to be damaged – maybe people would be hurt or worse – and blowing the gig? A public relations company would say we we stupid, but from my perspective of performing our music, it was very simple: I told the officials we would not perform unless they let those people in for free, thus preventing any trouble. They did and that was the first time I found out exactly waht political journalism was all about: Writing something sensational and extraordinary bring success, but at what expense?

‘On the other hand, we had a wonderful concert. As far as the music was concerned it was just great, but for political international journalism it was a total disappointment. The entire gig just got one small mention in a daily newspaper the next day – no one was really interested. If we were to do it again todas, I would make exactly the same decision’.

Filmed and recorded by th National Broadcasting Network of the GDR (German Democratic Republic), highlights of these heroic shows orignally appeared in June 1980 as the vinyl abum Quichotte on the East German label Amiga, Froese and Chris Franke having re-mixed and edited the music on the East Berlin as part of the original deal. Virgin later acquired the rights and a re-mastered West German reissue entitled Pergamon: Live At the Palast Der Republik was eventually realease in June 1986.

 The album’s two lengthy tracks are composed by Froese and Franke, who were in the process of preparing material for the next Virgin studio album, Tangram, when the go-ahead for the concerts came through at short notice. Consequently, themes from Tangram can be heard throughout the partly improvised music – including the excelent piano intro to ‘Quichotte (Part I)’ performed by classically-trained keyboard virtuoso Johannes Schmoelling, who had only joined the group a matter of weeks beforehand. Then aged 29, Schmoelling had several years experience as a theatre audio technicial being him, perfectly complementing the long-standing Froese/Franke nucleus to provide the first stable Tangerine Dream line-up since Peter Baumann left to pursue a solo career in November 1977″.