The CTM.13 Nordic Focus' signature programme takes place the afternoon of Saturday, February 2nd, at the Funkhaus Nalepastrasse, home of the DDR National Broadcasting Corporation until 1990. The programme tells the story of an old GDR synthesizer, the Subharchord, and continues to weave it into the present day, revealing a tale that has touches on the division of postwar Germany, the Cold War, Norwegian experimental music, and cultural politics.

Built in the 1960s in East Berlin, the Subharchord was an electronic sound generator ahead of its time, of which only 7 instruments were ever built. Thanks in part to the tireless work of sound art curator and researcher Carsten Seiffarth, who will be moderating the entire afternoon, the Subharchord is slowly coming into the limelight. Including a talk with one of the instrument’s creators, Gerhard Steinke, the program features performances by artists who have worked or are working with the instrument including the world premiere of a commissioned work by Norwegian ambient pioneer Biosphere performing with the improvisation Danish, Dutch and German group The Pitch, Frank Bretschneider performing his work, "Kippschwingungen", and a playback performance of Frederic Rzewski’s 1965 "Zoologischer Garten" remastered. The afternoon begins with an exclusive preview and discussion of the upcoming "Subharchord – A Child of the Golden Age" documentary directed by Ina Pillat in collaboration with Norway’s Atelier Nord film studio, who will be recording the Biosphere + The Pitch performance on-site, for use in the film.

The Subharchord - a Child of the Golden Age from Ina Pillat on Vimeo.

Another signature project, Pantha du Prince & The Bell Laboratory will be produced at the HAU 1 earlier in the week. Entitled "Elements of Light", the work is a collaborative project between German minimal techno producer Pantha du Prince and Norway’s The Bell Laboratory. The work is a symphony for electronics, percussion and bell carillon, a three-tonne instrument comprising 50 bronze bells.

Pantha du Prince & the Bell Laboratory - Trailer 1 from Sandra Trostel on Vimeo.

Several other Nordic artists are presented in special contexts throughout CTM.13, including Ulf Erkisson, creator and director of Malmo-based label Kontra, whose carefully curated catalogue and divergent aesthetic is having an increasingly significant influence on electronic music internationally. Sweden’s Mokira arrives under his TM404 moniker, a project that explores the effects and challenges of working with limited analogue sound sources – Roland’s 808, 606, and 404, while Danish post-punks Iceage bring their much anticipated performance, notoriously physical, sometimes aggressive, often destructive and always fun, to electrify the Berghain Kantine on Thursday January 31^st. The list is rounded out by Norway's DJ Sotofett, head of the Sex Tags label.

Taking place in parallel to CTM, transmediale 2013 likewise features a number of Nordic artists and scholars. Artists Tonje Alice Madsen (NO), Eija-Liisa Ahtila (FI), and Laura Horelli (FI) take part in the festival’s Film & Video Programme, performances are given by Jacob Sikker Remin (DK) and Anders Carlsson (Goto80, SE), while works by Jacob Nielsen (DK) and Mogens Jacobsen (DK) will be shown at its exhibition. Invited conference participants include Pär Thörn (SE), Jussi Parikka (FI), Sören Pold (DK), Christian Ulrik Andersen (DK), and Frederik Svensk (SE).

Finally CTM and transmediale’s pre-festival weekend, entitled reSource 003: P2P Vorspiel, involves a variety of Nordic artists within events, exhibitions, performances and more, all of which are created with partner organizations and venues across Berlin. Including Alexander Berman (SE), Filip Strebeyko (SE), Jacob Kirkegaard (DK), Susanne Skog (SE), Liv Strand (SE), Asa Stjerna (SE), and Morten J.Olsen (NO), the Vorspiel weekend gives Berliners a chance to discover the panorama of agents and actors involved in the city’s burgeoning artistic scene, and their links with artists abroad.

The presentation of these artists and projects would not be possible without the gracious support of the Nordic Culture Fund.