Karl Bartos: The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari

Robert Wiene's silent film classic from 1920 with new film music, composed by ex-Kraftwerk musician Karl Bartos

The silent film "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" by Robert Wiene from 1920 is an absolute classic and is considered the first psychological thriller in film history. One person who has dealt particularly intensively with this milestone in the history of expressionist film is the composer and musician Karl Bartos - better known to many as a long-time band member and co-composer of Kraftwerk. Karl Bartos, who is a classically trained musician, has had a passion for this German silent film for almost 20 years. Now he has tailored a new, experimentally interpreted sound for the film. This new film music will premiere in February 2024 at the Alte Oper Frankfurt. The digitally restored film version in 4K resolution meets the film music by Karl Bartos, which he plays and controls live on stage with his partner Mathias Black in sync.

Bartos lets himself be guided by the rhythm and tempo of the scenes. The most important means of expression for him was the timeless sound of the symphony orchestra, of course synthetically produced and electronically modulated. We hear melodies in the Bach tradition of the Baroque era and the early Romanticism of Mozart, we hear dissonances of Arnold Schoenberg, the disturbing metric playing of Stravinsky and Philip Glass' harsh dramatic repetitions. Outside the classical tradition, there are the folksy bricolage sounds of the barrel organ at the fair, reverse tape effects and sounds that would fit perfectly with a Kraftwerk album of the classical era.

Program and cast