R.I.P. Klaus Schulze

Klaus Schulze is dead.

Those are terrible words that I never thought I'd have to speak.

He died two days ago after a long unspecified illness. The news was released to the press yesterday evening. When I read the news I was shattered. Speechless. I wanted to write something about his death immediately, but I wasn't up to it. All I did was post a few words on Facebook.

Klaus Schulze's name isn't well known, but his influence on the music industry is immense. He wasn't the first musician to use synthesizers, but he was the first to use them as instruments in their own right. He didn't imitate the sounds of other instruments, and he didn't make the squeaky wailing sounds that other synthesizer players did in the late 1960's and early 1970's. It's difficult to put the difference into words. You need to sit down and compare him with his contemporaries like Walter Carlos, Brian Eno and Keith Emerson.

He might not be well known with the general public, but he was always well known among musicians. Many groups of the 1980's and especially the 1990's cite him as their major influence. He was frequently called the Godfather of Techno, although I see little similarity in the musical style. Musicians from just about every style of electronic music speak respectfully of him. In his career that lasted almost 50 years he's gone through a multitude of styles, so there's something for everyone to pick on for inspiration.

My first contact with Klaus Schulze was in 1971, when I bought Ash Ra Tempel's first album. He didn't particularly stand out. He was just one of three musicians, alongside Manuel Göttsching and Hartmut Enke. A few months later I saw "Irrlicht" in my local music shop, Virgin Records. My reaction was, "That's strange. Ash Ra Tempel's drummer has made a solo album". Any doubts I had were soon lost. "Irrlicht" became my favourite album, and up to today it's the album I've listened to more than any other. I've listened to it hundreds of times, literally.

There was a long gap before I got my hands on Klaus Schulze's second album, "Cyborg". It was released a year later, but I believe there was a delay before it was exported to England. Most of his first albums were only released in Germany, and the export market was patchy, compared to today. After "Cyborg" his albums arrived swiftly, some even in the wrong order.

Klaus Schulze was part of my life. My closest friends were all fans of his music. Whenever he released a new album we sat together and listened to it excitedly. One of the happiest days in my life was when I was finally able to see him perform live in Berlin on 5th October 1976.

There are other musicians that I like. If you read my blog regularly you'll know what other sorts of music I listen to. Nevertheless, I consider Klaus Schulze to be the best musician of the 20th Century. (He also released albums in the 21st Century, but I don't think they reach the same quality. I know others disagree with me, so I emphasise it's just my opinion).

In the news reports it's claimed that Klaus made 50 solo albums. That's not correct. When his albums were rereleased in the early 2000's, they were numbered, from 1 to 91. His subsequent albums haven't been numbered, so there are more. I believe the correct number is 105, but I'll have to check when I get home. I have all his albums, of course.

In 2019 I started listening to all his albums in order and writing a few words about each in my blog. For some reason I stopped in 2020. I don't know why. The biggest respect I can show Klaus is to continue where I left off as soon as I get home.

Klaus Schulze
4 August 1947 – 26 April 2022