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Klaus Schulze

Real Name:
Klaus Schulze
Profile:
Born August 4th 1947, Schulze initially made his mark as a drummer, first with the group Psy Free, later with Tangerine Dream (he played on their first album "Electronic Meditation" before he quit) and Ash Ra Tempel (with Manuel Göttsching). In 1971 Schulze started a solo career as an electronic musician and released a couple of heavily experimental albums, "Irrlicht" and "Cyborg". 1974's "Blackdance" was the first release where he used a "real" synthesizer, and later in the 70's he would record albums such as "Moondawn", "Mirage" and "X" and embark on several tours, documented across a number of live albums.

In 1978 he set up the label Innovative Communication and the following year he also launched the pseudonym/project Richard Wahnfried. In the 1980's Schulze continued his hectic release schedule as well as recording several soundtracks and rebuilding his studio (he "went digital" in 1986). In summer 1983 Klaus Schulze 'sold' Innovative Communication.

In the 1990's Schulze recorded several electronic interpretations of works by classical composers (most notably Wagner) as well as collaborating with opera singers and other classical music performers on his own albums. He also started collaborating with German ambient/techno artist Pete Namlook in the series "The Dark Side Of The Moog" on the latter's Fax label, and steered the Wahnfried project into a more modern techno- and trance-inspired direction.
Sites:
klaus-schulze.com, Wikipedia, ks.synthmusic.info, famouscomposers.net
Aliases:
Richard Wahnfried, Schulzendorfer Groove Orchester
In Groups:
Ash Ra Tempel, Din A Testbild, Galactic Supermarket, Software, Stomu Yamashta's Go, Tangerine Dream, The Cosmic Jokers, The Dark Side Of The Moog
Variations:
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Klaus Schulze Discography Tracks

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Albums
Klaus Schulze Irrlicht (Album) Ohr France 1972 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze Cyborg (Album) Kosmische Musik France 1973 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze Blackdance (Album) Brain, Brain, Metronome Australia 1974 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze Timewind (Album) Brain, Brain UK 1975 Sell This Version
840.060 The Cosmic Jokers Featuring Klaus Schulze The Cosmic Jokers Featuring Klaus Schulze - The Cosmic Jokers ‎(LP, Album, Quad) Cosmic Music (2) 840.060 France 1975 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze Picture Music (Album) Brain, Brain Germany 1975 Sell This Version
840.088/089, OHR 840.088/089 Klaus Schulze, Manuel Goettsching*, Jerry Berkers, Juergen Dollase*, Harald Grosskopf, Hartmut Enke, Walter Westrupp & Walter Wegmüller Klaus Schulze, Manuel Goettsching*, Jerry Berkers, Juergen Dollase*, Harald Grosskopf, Hartmut Enke, Walter Westrupp & Walter Wegmüller - Starring In Tarot ‎(2xLP, Album, Quad, RE, Gat) Cosmic Music (2), Cosmic Music (2) 840.088/089, OHR 840.088/089 France 1975 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze, Ash Ra Tempel Klaus Schulze, Ash Ra Tempel - Join Inn (Album) Cosmic Music (2), Ohr France 1975 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze Moondawn (Album) Brain, Brain Germany 1976 Sell This Version
Stomu Yamashta* / Steve Winwood / Klaus Schulze / Michael Shrieve / Al Di Meola Stomu Yamashta* / Steve Winwood / Klaus Schulze / Michael Shrieve / Al Di Meola - Go!... Live From Paris (Album) Island Records, Island Records US 1976 Sell This Version
Pld. SQ 6061 S.Golowin* - J.Berkers* - J.Dollase* - J.Mierke* - K.Schulze* - W.Westrupp* - B.Witthüser* S.Golowin* - J.Berkers* - J.Dollase* - J.Mierke* - K.Schulze* - W.Westrupp* - B.Witthüser* - Lord Krishna Von Goloka ‎(LP, Quad) PDU Pld. SQ 6061 Italy 1976 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze Body Love (Album) Metronome Germany 1977 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze Mirage (Album) Brain UK 1977 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze Body Love Vol.2 (Album) Brain Portugal 1977 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze "X" (Album) Brain, Brain Germany 1978 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze Dune (Album) Brain Germany 1979 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze Dig It (Album) Brain Germany 1980 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze ...Live... (Album) Brain, Brain Germany 1980 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze Trancefer (Album) Innovative Communication, Innovative Communication Germany 1981 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze & Rainer Bloss Klaus Schulze & Rainer Bloss - Dziękuję Poland (Live '83) (Album) Innovative Communication France 1983 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze Audentity (Album) Innovative Communication, Innovative Communication Italy 1983 Sell This Version
0421-347466 Klaus Schulze Der Deutsche E-Musiker ‎(LP, Ltd) Verlag Innovation Design 0421-347466 Germany 1983 Sell This Version
Michael Shrieve with Kevin Shrieve and Klaus Schulze Michael Shrieve with Kevin Shrieve and Klaus Schulze - Transfer Station Blue (Album) Fortuna Records US 1984 Sell This Version
Klaus Schulze Angst (Album) Inteam GmbH Germany 1984 Sell This Version
Rainer Bloss & Klaus Schulze Rainer Bloss & Klaus Schulze - Drive Inn (Album) Inteam GmbH Germany 1984 Sell This Version

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Sergelenkov

Sergelenkov

June 20, 2018
edited about 1 month ago
Klaus Schulze is genius and wizard of electronic music. To explore his works is an interesting quest. As he used to say in the first 10 minutes of his composotions he creates his listener and only after that the interesting things are starting. So you have to be thoughtful listener and his music will work for you. Sometimes it works from the second or from the third, fourth listening. If it doesn't - simply try other album. Klaus Schulze recorded a lot of them. "Mirage", "Timewind", "Body Love", "Dune" (with Arthur Brown), "X", "Dig It", "Kontinuum" - long imaginary landscapes of thoughts and rhythms. "Freindship", "In Blue" are collaborations with Manuel Göttsching (Ashra). And by the way don't forget to listen to the albums by Ash Ra Tempel. And it's different music. "Farscape", "Rheingold", "Big in Europe" are albums with completely improvised singing by Lisa Gerrard (Dead Can Dance) - and it's other kind of music. Light relaxing comfortable chill-out music of "Cocooning" and "Privée" (Contemporary Works). And it's not all turns on his artistic way. Even not the half of all turns. You should be prepared for disilussions (what's to like here?) and for the openings (wow!). His works wouldn't remind you of the style of other wizards of classical electronic music from the 70's 80's - Jarre, Vangelis, Michel Huygen (Neuronium), Zanov. It's different approach. He is a kind of Columbus who tried to open way to India and China but instead of it he find the way to different interesting and strange places. And you will follow him in his expeditions. Start to listen with "Crystal Lake" from "Mirage" - this music is keeping the secret of life and death.
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e-control

e-control

May 4, 2018
completely agree with "ttooyyss". Klaus Schulze = most overrated artist musicwise.
the same, uninspired chords, melodies all over.
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Herr_Lenz

Herr_Lenz

January 6, 2018
The pressing quality and the sound of the 2017 releases are good, but the reproduction of the cover artwork are bad and in the case of "irrlicht" it´s just the cover of the 2nd release from the 70´s and not the artwork from the 1st press. The pictures are blurred and pixelated. The good thing are the download card. But i think, it´s a lost chance to re-release a lot of magnificent albums from the legenday Klaus Schulze.
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hawklord90

hawklord90

November 30, 2017
I own hundreds of synth cds and I to little Willie John find a lot of it cheesy .I listen to all sorts of music, bowie to zappa , singer song writers and em .but I always return to schulze don't know what it is but know one does what he does better and yes he has produced some tosh but so have all the others , I think a lot of people don't get schulze because he doesn't play "tunes" but I think that's the main thing people who follow him love about him . For me the down side of him is watching him play live just seems to hold down a chord and just building up to a solo .but you can't have everything
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littlewilliejohn

littlewilliejohn

March 17, 2016
mhiraldo, we are obviously dealing with questions of taste here. For example, I consider much of Vangelis' and Tomita's work to be quite cheesy, but Schulze' big detractor on this thread seems to think that these people are superior to Schulze in every way.

I dislike categorical pronouncements of any sort, and I think that Schulze's chief fault (aided and abetted by his manager Klaus Mueller) is his inability to edit himself. Consequently, there's a lot of Schulze material available which is extremely boring and predictable -- like (as several critics have observed) he has flipped the automatic pilot switch. But then again, I find his best work, early and recent, to be exquisitely beautiful. So for the less than serious Schulze listener, it can be a question of what he/she has been exposed to.
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phantammeron

phantammeron

October 27, 2015
Thank you Klaus Schulze for your inspiring work. I am a huge fan here in the US and always discovering new and amazing things in your music. Being a Richard Wagner fan, I can feel the influence in your music in the epic qualities portrayed therein. I look forward to listening to more of your work, as it has inspired my own art and writing. Best of luck to you :)
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TheBishopde

TheBishopde

June 16, 2015
Klaus Schulze is a phenomenon. Just listen to his debut IRRLICHT - without any Synthesizer he created everything known today as "ambient" or "drone". Long before Brian Eno even thought about such soundscapes. Schulze made his mark all along the Electronic Music timeline, call it Berlin School, Ambient, Trance or Chillout. Tell me anyone, who "invented" a "new" electronic style...I name you an even earlier Schulze album with that music already explored.
For those about to discuss KS and his magnificent music, join us on Facebook: Deutsches Klaus Schulze Forum (don't mind the "Deutsches", we are international though) ;-)
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cosmit

cosmit

June 18, 2013
edited over 5 years ago
"Ah, the master has done it again. I firmly believe that Klaus Schulze is as important to electronic music as BACH or MOZART were to classical music"
July 1984, "Synthetic Pleasure, USA"

Totally agree!
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TimaMachine

TimaMachine

September 30, 2012
edited over 5 years ago
The fact that there is only one comment here and it being negative about the great Klaus Schulze should tell you a little bit about this site's demographic and user base. Now just head to a release by Drexciya, Jeff Mills, Aphex Twin, Basic Channels, and so on... and read people drooling about how amazing some of these overrated producers are. You also find users fighting like little kids over who started techno and all that nonsense. I guess it makes them happy to think that their favorite artist was the one who started it all. Personally I don't consider myself a fan of any particular artist (Klaus Schulze included), I am only a fan of good music regardless of who is behind it. Unfortunately fanboys usually fail to admit when their favorite artist does a poor job, they somehow feel obligated to defend. However, the more music you listen to it becomes easier to separate true talents from the untalented and calling KS "untalented pioneer" is simply laughable. Like so many prolific artists KS discography includes highs and lows; despite that his overall influence on the evolution of electronic music is essential. Although a lot of wanna be producers have tried, there are only a handful out there (KS included) that can make a 30min+ track so enjoyable and worth listening to again and again. For god's sake, producers of today can barely make a 3min track enjoyable. Now if you want to go back and find origins of say ambient, electro, techno or trance, you might as well put KS on top of your list. The sounds this guy was making during his late 70s/early 80s period have so many trademarks of what trance music should be and that is "putting you in a state of trance". Yes, it's not club trance with beats and all that but it certainly is a precursor to the hypnotic and spacey trance sounds of early 90's picked up by the likes of Dance 2 Trance and others.

Is it a surprise then that even the Trancemaster 4 compilation from 1993 included "Druck", a track composed by KS 22 years before this compilation came out?

With that said, here's my little recommendation for those who want a good taste of Berlin School of music and KS for that matter, check out some of these albums, the tracks inside brackets are personal picks and the ones that get a solid 5/5 from me. This is merely a teaser compared to Klaus Schulze's overall output throughout the years.

"Timewind" (1975) ----> [Bayreuth Return]
"Moondawn" (1976) ----> [Floating] (His best track for me, after 7min mark, it's progressive heaven)
"Body Love" (1977) ----> [P.T.O.]
"Body Love Vol.2" (1977) ----> [Nowhere - Now Here]
"X" (1978) ----> [Friedrich Nietzsche, Georg Trakl, Frank Herbert]
"Tonwelle" (1981) ----> [Druck]
"Drive Inn" (1984) ----> [Drive Inn, Highway, Road Clear]
"Transfer Station Blue" (1984) ----> [Communiqué: "Approach Spiral"]
"Dreams" (1986) ----> [A Classical Move]
"Miditerranean Pads" (1990) ----> [Decent Changes]
"Beyond Recall" (1991) ----> [Brave Old Sequence]
"Trance Appeal" (1996) ----> [A Chilly Fiesta, Esprit Sans Frontieres]
"Drums ´N´ Balls (The Gancha Dub)" (1997) ----> [House Of India]
"Dosburg Online" (1997) ----> [L'Age Core, The Art Of Sequencing]
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ttooyyss

ttooyyss

August 28, 2012
edited over 5 years ago
Bloody untalented (but undoubtly a pioneer). Lacks of any ability. No musical gift, no sense to the synthesizers. I know most of his releases (ca. 70 albums, maybe more and I can't help but saying: some are simply discusting) and have owned many houndreds of vintage synthesizers and studio technics. So I know what makes a man a synthesist. He always had all the best instruments and incredible amount of equipments. How the hell they are remained soo dull, and characterless under his arms? Unbeliveable. Pity, Klaus Schulze remained a beginner forever. No music, no developement, but all the time just exactly the 2 chord-changes like of a child's work, most of the times just boring background music. Most of the sonic timbres he has used are just factory presets from his actual synths. Many of the sonic timbres are used throughout multiple albums. The mixing of the music is equally horrible most of the times: ALL the instruments were sent through a bloody sounding digital reverbator, even the kick drum too, just to make all more kitschy. With such a womanish face one is selfexplanatory unable to creat music. Just look at him! Boooaaahh.. (And he is not the only one in the genre I can say it all. Software, Peter Mergener, early Kitaro....) Sorry, I can't say anything good about Klaus Schulze despite of how I admire this kind of music genre (Berlin school, new-age electro prog....). OK. He was always among the pioneers but there are soo many wonderful artist in this (or similar electro) genre:

Kraftwerk is the god of all.
Isao Tomita is the grandioso monster artist.
Logic System - Logic album is one of the best ever.
The less known Johan Timman's Trip into the body is an artistic, pure Moogy showcase.
Tangerine Dream - Exit and White Eagle are outstanding even from their discography.
Jean-Michel jarre?? Oxygen is the timeless, perfect creature.
Vangelis?? Huh... The Greek hero of synths and musical progression.

How the hell could one set K.Schulze among these?
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