Edgar Froese - 1944 - 2015 / Tangerine Dream - Phaedra

This sad note was posted today on the Tangerine Dream website:

Dear Friends,

This is a message to you we are deeply sorry for…

On January 20th, Tuesday afternoon, Edgar Froese suddenly and unexpectedly passed away from the effects of a pulmonary embolism in Vienna.

The sadness in our hearts is immensely.

Edgar once said: “There is no death, there is just a change of our cosmic address."Edgar, this is a little comfort to us.

One of the pioneers in the Krautrock music scene, Edgar Froese was a founding member of the legendary band Tangerine Dream and its only constant member since 1967. Almost from the beginning, the group began creating a sometimes-ethereal, sometimes percolating and insistent blend of synthesized music. This style employed minimal arrangements combined with sequencer-driven parts that would repeat in almost-hypnotic waves that gave Froese and his bandmates space to improvise synthesizer and guitar parts, as well as occasional saxophone and flute passages. Tangerine Dream essentially helped to define a number of styles that have developed over the years such as new age, ambient, contemporary space music and electronica, as well as the elements that crop up frequently in progressive rock and dance music.

From R.I.P. Edgar Froese, Tangerine Dream founder dead at 70
by Alex Young, Consequence of Sound

Edgar Froese, the founder of pioneering electronic band Tangerine Dream, has died at the age of 70. According to Tangerine Dream’s Facebook page, Froese passed away “suddenly and unexpectedly” from the effects of a pulmonary embolism. He was residing in Vienna, Austria.

A native of West Berlin, Froese founded Tangerine Dream in 1967 and remained the band’s only constant member through its six decade existence. The band is well known for its mammoth creative output, having released over 100 albums in addition to scoring countless movie film scores and soundtracks.

Alongside fellow German outfits like Kraftwerk and Can, Tangerine Dream was a torchbearer of the Krautrock genre. In the 1970s, Froese began experimenting with new studio techniques, including sequencers and the Moog synthesizer. It was during these years that Tangerine Dream experienced the height of its critical and commercial success, as 1973’s Atem was crowned album of the year by influential UK DJ John Peel, and 1974’s Phaedra reached No. 15 on the UK charts.

I became a fan of Tangerine Dream the first time I heard them, and I remain a fan to this day. They are one of the big reasons I became interested in synthesizer music, and why I own several synthesizers that I don't play nearly enough these days. I have a relatively small but beloved collection of the band's CDs and well-worn old cassette tapes. This is music I use for relaxation, for introspection, for background music when I write. Rather than distract, it seems to help me focus.

I don't know what this means for the future of Tangerine Dream. Indeed, Edgar Froese was Tangerine Dream, its heart, soul and creative wellspring. I hope it continues, though, carrying on his legacy.