In preparation for its 15th edition, CTM presents a diverse range of programmes in collaboration with international partners, foreshadowing dimensions of the CTM 2014 festival theme.

Under the title Dis Continuity, CTM 2014 is dedicated to idiosyncratic
musical pioneers and the influence of their ideas in contemporary pop and experimental music, attempting to explore and map fragments of an alternative or neglected history of electronic and experimental music that still waits to be fully written.

CTM.14 Prelude Montreal

CTM.14 Prelude Montreal, presented in collaboration with MUTEK and the PHI Center, paid homage to German minimalist pioneer, Ernstalbrecht Stiebler. Working against dominant trends in music to come out of the 20th by experimentalists such as Stockhausen, Reich, and Cage – the little-known luminary’s work can be credited with laying the foundation for contemporary minimalist music. The programme presented Stiebler’s works as performed by cellist Agnieszka Dziubak and Quatuor Bozzini, and also included talks and performances from the artist himself.

CTM.14 Prelude Berlin

In a programme sampling the scope of CTM 2014 Dis Continuity, The CTM.14 Berlin prelude featured London-based trio Factory Floor’s kaleidoscopic sound, allying the lush danceability and vintage synths of East India Youth, Innen + Aussen, and Hyetal with the hypnotic acceleration and raw noise of Reliq and Opium Hum.

CTM.14 Prelude Riga

Longtime CTM partner and co-member of ICAS – International Cities of Advanced Sound – Skanu Mežs (LV) presented celebrated 20th century minimalist composer Phill Niblock for CTM.14 Prelude Riga. Niblock was joined by Stephan Mathieu, a creator of digital minimalist soundscapes and compositions, who has continued to develop certain conceptual, technical, and aesthetic ideas initiated by Niblock. Also performing was KTL, the long-running collaboration between guitarist Stephen O'Malley of Sunn O))) and Peter Rehberg, whose more recent work deviates from the metal and noise environment of their earlier sound to tackle the musical processes of the European avant-garde, referencing Niblock’s long, complex, and immersive drone techniques.

CTM.14 Prelude Montevideo

SOCO Festival and CTM Festival together present a concert divided in two acts. Berliners Jan Jelinek and Andrew Pekler stage their multi-media project Jan Jelinek & Andrew Pekler play Ursula Bogner, inspired by the early pure-electronics/post-war avant-garde compositions of the late Ursula Bogner (1946–94) and presented for the first time in Latin America, alongside the exclusive premiere of Uruguayan artist, Par. The outstanding programme is presented in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Goethe Institut of Uruguay.

CTM.14 Prelude Helsinki I & II

From November 2013 until March 2014, the Kiasma Museum for Contemporary Art in Helsinki will be presenting a retrospective exhibition on Erkki Kurreniemi, a pioneering artist who played a central role in the development of electronic music in Finland and whose work will be exhibited as part of CTM.14. The Pneuma mini-festival in Helskinki's Kiasma Theatre comprises screenings, live music performances, and discussions complimenting exhibitions, notably including an audiovisual concert by filmmaker Mika Taanila and the Circle band, and a commissioned piece by electronic experimentalist and former Pan-Sonic member Mika Vainio for Kurenniemi’s DIMI instruments.