The 6th edition of AGGREGATE – led by Berlin ensemble gamut inc – spans a wide spectrum of organ music where the acoustic meets the digital – computer-controlled and wind-dynamic instruments, human-machine interaction, and the radical minimalism of 1-bit electronics. Over two days, new works will be presented at two iconic Berlin venues: St Hedwig’s Cathedral and, for the first time, the Konzerthaus Berlin.
The series kicks off with the adaptation of works by electronic music pioneer Laurie Spiegel for the organ at the Konzerthaus. In direct collaboration with the composer—who has granted gamut inc permission to create these arrangements and provided the necessary material—the pieces “East River Dawn” and “Drums” from the album “The Expanding Universe” will be adapted for the organ. Spiegel’s algorithmic musical language captivates with its evolving textures and shifting timbres.
gamut inc works with pulse-width modulation of MIDI notes and approximated overtone structures—on their custom-developed modular organ, BLACK SQUARE, this is complemented by precise air pressure control for each pipe. As Ensemble in Residence (2026–27 season), gamut inc will also present an expanded version of “dialogue de l’orgue double”: In this performance, BLACK SQUARE enters into a dialogue with the organ in the Great Hall of the Konzerthaus.
Seth Horvitz, known as Rrose, presents a new series of works for automated pipe organ. His compositions use simple computer-assisted compositional processes to explore the boundaries of human perception and mechanical precision: temporal distortions and iterative processes coalesce into a sensual complexity.
A pipe organ has only two states—sound or silence, with no decay. Exactly the same applies to Perich’s 1-bit electronics, which set speakers in motion using binary current pulses. This shared “on-or-off” principle lends the work a conceptual unity. The 100 speakers—four subwoofers, 24 medium-sized, and 72 small—are set up in front of the organ. At AGGREGATE festival, Tristan Perich & James McVinnie will present their widely acclaimed work “Infinity Gradient”.
Phillip Sollmann aka Efdemin and Konrad Sprenger adapt one of their pieces for the Konzerthaus organ—a work that unfolds layer by layer and culminates in a mesmerizing rush of sound.
Organist Marcel Andreas Ober, together with electronic musician Bernsteinzimmer, will open the second day of the festival at St. Hedwig’s Cathedral. Mexican composer Mauricio Silva Orendain will present a new work for computer-controlled organ.
