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Kurt Dahlke (born 29 April 1958) is a German musician and record producer. He is a founding member of record label/publishing company ''Ata Tak'' and has worked and still works in several bands. Dahlke is also known as Pyrolator. Several times he has been commissioned by the
Goethe-Institut The Goethe-Institut (, GI, en, Goethe Institute) is a non-profit German cultural association operational worldwide with 159 institutes, promoting the study of the German language abroad and encouraging international cultural exchange an ...
for workshops or concerts. On stage, Dahlke operates his computer/synthesizer hardware by the movement or the pressure of the hands, with ''Thunder'' and ''Lightning'', two controllers built by
Don Buchla Donald Buchla (April 17, 1937 – September 14, 2016) was an American pioneer in the field of sound synthesis. Buchla popularized the "West Coast" style of synthesis. He was co-inventor of the voltage controlled modular synthesizer along with Robe ...
.


Career

In 1978, Dahlke was a founding member of D.A.F, but left the band in 1979, when he became a member of
Der Plan ''Der Plan'' is a German electronic music group from Düsseldorf, formed in the earlier months of 1979 by Moritz Reichelt (A.K.A. Moritz R®), Kai Horn, and Frank Fenstermacher, originally under the name of ''Weltaufstandsplan'' ("World Rebellion ...
(until 1992), and
Fehlfarben Fehlfarben is a Neue Deutsche Welle music band from Düsseldorf, Germany, that was formed in 1979. Its founding members were Peter Hein (vocals), former member of the Band ''Mittagspause'' ("lunch break"), Thomas Schwebel (guitar, former Mit ...
(until 1980 and again since 2002). From the same year on he labeled his solo work as ''Pyrolator''. Dahlke collaborated on several films of director
Rainer Kirberg Rainer may refer to: People * Rainer (surname) * Rainer (given name) Other * Rainer Island, an island in Franz Josef Land, Russia * 16802 Rainer Year 168 ( CLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar ...
, with ''Der Plan'' in ''Die letzte Rache'' (1983) and ''Grottenolm'' (1985) and in 2011 as sound designer in ''Das schlafende Mädchen''. In 1996 he worked with his ''Der Plan'' partner Frank Fenstermacher as ''A certain Frank, in ''2005 he started a collaboration with painter Jörn Stoya as ''Bombay 1''. Until today he's been involved as musician, engineer or producer in more than 400 releases.


Pyrolator

In 1979 he released ''Inland'', his first album as ''Pyrolator''. The cover stated: ''Pyrolator Synthesizer Inland'', the music is quite experimental, close to industrial music, incorporating field recordings and harsh electronica. On the follow-up ''Ausland'' (1981) he worked with a list of Ata Tak associated guests including his Der Plan colleagues and
Holger Hiller Holger Hiller (born 26 December 1956) is a German musician. Hiller studied art at the Hochschule für bildende Künste in Hamburg, where he met Walter Thielsch and Thomas Fehlmann and recorded first works with them. With Fehlmann he later foun ...
. The songs range from experimental electronica to synth-pop, where ''Wunderland'' (1984) became his most playful, melodic and popular effort with references to world music. In 1985 Dahlke collaborated with Arnd Kai Klosowski for the album ''Hometaping Is Killing Music'' an early effort in popular music based entirely on sampling. 1987's ''Pyrolator's Traumland'' with Susan Brackeen on vocals and a whole range of guest musicians became his most commercial and less experimental album. He then teamed up with Linda Sharrock and Frank Samba for ''Every 2nd'', an album commissioned for the German Olympic pavilion at the 1988 Seoul Games. With the singles ''Ficcion Disco'' and ''City Space'' from 1992/1993 he moved towards Techno, which led to his productions for ''Antonelli Electr.'' the techno project of
Stefan Schwander Stefan may refer to: * Stefan (given name) * Stefan (surname) * Ștefan, a Romanian given name and a surname * Štefan, a Slavic given name and surname * Stefan (footballer) (born 1988), Brazilian footballer * Stefan Heym, pseudonym of German writ ...
– another Ata Tak artist (with ''The I-Burnettes'', 1990, and ''The Bad Examples'', from 1996 on). ''Neuland'' from 2011 is the first Pyrolator album not released on Ata Tak but
Bureau-B Bureau B (sometimes quoted as ''Bureau-B'') is an independent record label, music publisher and booking agency from Hamburg, Germany, founded in 2005 by Gunther Buskies (B for Buskies) as a sister label to Tapete Records. The label releases vari ...
. It received a four star rating on
Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...
.


Ata Tak

Dahlke is a founding member of the independent record label and publishing company ''Ata Tak'', as well as associated label ''Das Büro'', from 1979 on, and with over 150 releases still in operation. The two labels have been a fulcrum of the German
Post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-r ...
/
Neue Deutsche Welle Neue Deutsche Welle (NDW, , "New German Wave") is a genre of West German rock music originally derived from post-punk and new wave music with electronic influences. The term was first coined by Dutch radio DJ Frits Spits on the popular nationwid ...
scene, with releases of artists like
Der Plan ''Der Plan'' is a German electronic music group from Düsseldorf, formed in the earlier months of 1979 by Moritz Reichelt (A.K.A. Moritz R®), Kai Horn, and Frank Fenstermacher, originally under the name of ''Weltaufstandsplan'' ("World Rebellion ...
, Lost Gringos,
DAF Daf ( fa, دف) also known as Dâyere and Riq is a Middle Eastern (mainly Iranian) frame drum musical instrument, used in popular and classical music in South and Central Asia. It is also used in Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Tajikistan, Iran ...
, Die Zimmermänner,
Holger Hiller Holger Hiller (born 26 December 1956) is a German musician. Hiller studied art at the Hochschule für bildende Künste in Hamburg, where he met Walter Thielsch and Thomas Fehlmann and recorded first works with them. With Fehlmann he later foun ...
,
Andreas Dorau Andreas ( el, Ἀνδρέας) is a name usually given to males in Austria, Greece, Cyprus, Denmark, Armenia, Estonia, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Finland, Flanders, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Romania, the Netherlands, and Indonesia. The name ...
, S.Y.P.H.,
Die Tödliche Doris Die Tödliche Doris ''(Deadly Doris;'' a pun on ''tödliche Dosis,'' meaning ''lethal dose)'' was a performance art and music group based in West Berlin from 1980 to 1987. It was founded by band members Wolfgang Müller and and later joined by , ...
, or Minus Delta T. Later on Ata Tak e.g. released
The Bad Examples The Bad Examples is an indie alternative pop-rock group formed by songwriter, acoustic guitarist, and vocalist Ralph Covert in 1987 in Chicago, Illinois. The band has had significant changes in the line-up over the years but the core of the group ...
,
Element of Crime Element of Crime is a German rock band that plays melancholic chanson, pop and rock music with guitar, bass guitar, drums and voice/trumpet. Band history The band was founded in 1985 by Sven Regener who subsequently became known as the aut ...
or 1993 the first album of
Oval An oval () is a closed curve in a plane which resembles the outline of an egg. The term is not very specific, but in some areas (projective geometry, technical drawing, etc.) it is given a more precise definition, which may include either one o ...
.


Selected discography

*Pyrolator albums: **Inland (1979) **Ausland (1981) **Wunderland (1984) **Hometaping is Killing Music (as Pyrolator/A.K.Klosowski) (1985) **Traumland (1987) ** Every Second (as Pyrolator/Sharrock/Samba) (1988) **Neuland (2011) **Con-Struct (2015) (with Conrad Schnitzler) *A Certain Frank albums: **no end of no (1996) **Nobody ? No! (1998) **remixed by... (1999) **Nothing (2001) **Wildlife Live (2006) *Fehlfarben albums: **Monarchie und Alltag (1980) **Knietief im Dispo (2002) **26 1/2 (2006) **Handbuch für die Welt (2007) **Hier und jetzt (Live, 2009) **Glücksmaschinen (2010) *Bombay 1 albums: **The Identity Thing (2001) **Me Like You (2002) **Strobl (2005) *
Der Plan ''Der Plan'' is a German electronic music group from Düsseldorf, formed in the earlier months of 1979 by Moritz Reichelt (A.K.A. Moritz R®), Kai Horn, and Frank Fenstermacher, originally under the name of ''Weltaufstandsplan'' ("World Rebellion ...
albums: **Geri Reig (1980) **Normalette Surprise (1981) **Die letzte Rache (1983) **Japlan (1985) **Fette Jahre (1986) **Es ist eine fremde und seltsame Welt (1987) **Perlen (1988) **Die Peitsche des Lebens (1989) **Live At The Tiki Ballroom (1993) *Other: **
Ein Produkt der Deutsch-Amerikanischen Freundschaft ''Ein Produkt der Deutsch-Amerikanischen Freundschaft'' (''A Product of German-American Friendship'') is the first album by the German electronic music group Deutsch-Amerikanische Freundschaft. It was the second release, and first album, on Kurt ...
(1979) **Trashmuseum – I'd Rather Die Young Before I Grow Old Without You (1985) (with Stoya and Thomas Schwebel **Air-Weaving (1995) **Telarana – Frühlingserwachen (1996) **Beta Foly (1997) with
Lukas Ligeti Lukas Ligeti (born in Vienna, Austria, 13 June 1965) is an Austrian-American composer and percussionist. His work incorporates elements of jazz, contemporary classical and various world musics, especially African traditional and popular music styl ...
**Pascal Plantinga Live (2006) **Burkina Electric (2006) (with Lukas Ligeti)


References


External links


homepage of Ata Tak

Dahlke on Discogs

Dahlke on allmusic.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dahlke, Kurt 1958 births Living people Musicians from Wuppertal German male musicians German electronic music groups Intelligent dance musicians German new wave musicians Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft members