The Linzer Klangwolke
The Idea
A popular cultural element linking up Ars Electronica and the Brucknerfest was sought. And one was found! Since then, two million enthusiasts have flocked to the riverside Donaupark for the Linzer Klangwolke that has become one of the city’s signature events.
Dr. Hannes Leopoldseder, director of the ORF – Austrian Broadcasting Company’s Upper Austria Regional Studio and one of the founders of the Linzer Klangwolke, sought a popular cultural element linking up the newly launched Ars Electronica Festival and the International Brucknerfest. His search led him to Walter Haupt, a Munich musician and composer who had already staged “Musik für eine Landschaft” in the environs of that Southern German city. Talks between Walter Haupt and Hannes Leopoldseder ultimately led to the Linzer Klangwolke. A quadraphonic sound configuration would fill the Donaupark with the music of Anton Bruckner. In 1979, it was Bruckner’s 8th Symphony performed by the Concertgebouw Amsterdam conducted by Bernard Haitink. This initial broadcast utilized multi-track tape technology provided by the record company involved, and 100,000 listeners were astounded by the results of the Linzer Klangwolke’s first experiment. Technically speaking: 20,000 watts of electrical power were what the sound system made available at that time; today, its output far exceeds 200,000 watts. The Klangwolke featuring a live orchestra followed in 1980: The Bruckner Orchester Linz conducted by Theodor Guschlbauer performing Bruckner’s 4th Symphony.
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