UWE OBERGs MUSIC FOR SILENT FILMS
Since 1990 pianist Uwe Oberg has been working for the German Filmmuseum Frankfurt and
the German Filminstitut in Wiesbaden. Through the years he has accompanied most of the
important silent films and is a film-pianist in demand. He creates music rooted in Jazz and
contemporary music.
His music is more than illustration or mere accompaniment, each performance is unique.
He colours the films in extraordinary sounds derived from extended piano-techniques,
like playing with prepared strings and live-electronics. Thereby he brings them to the present.
2018/19 he composed and performed music for KINO VARIETÉ RHEIN-MAIN with vocal artist
Silvia Sauer (commissioned for the 10 year-anniversary of Kulturfonds Frankfurt Rhein-Main).
Oberg mostly plays solo for films, but also joins other musicians like Alfred Harth, Berlin
clarinetist Rudi Mahall, chinese guzheng-player Xu Fengxia, trombonist Christof Thewes,
electronic-specialist Uli Boettcher.
Uwe Oberg performed at Goethe-Institut Skopje (Mazedonia) and Goethe Film Week Kairo.
Festivals: Exground On Screen, Go East!, StummFilmMusik-Festival Erlangen, Open Ohr Mainz,
FilmKunst-Festival Ulm, Stummfilmtage Karlsruhe, Trier (Opening-Festival), Filmfest. Tübingen,
furthermore in Esslingen, Gütersloh, Köln, Düsseldorf, Wuppertal, Marburg, Heidelberg, Cottbus,
Clausenburg und Hermannstadt (Romania) and many more.
LIST OF SILENT FILMS WITH SOUND SAMPLES
UWE OBERG LIVE WITH SILENTS 2023
Jan. 3
Frankfurt Filmmuseum
DIE PUPPE (Lubitsch)
Jan. 10, 6.30 pm
Wiesbaden Caligari
SCHATTEN (Arthur Robison)
Jan. 17
Frankfurt Filmmuseum
JUWELEN
February 6, 6 pm
Wiesbaden Caligari
DER MANN MIT DER KAMERA (UdSSR 1929, Dsiga Wertow)
March 1, 8 pm
Wiesbaden, Murnau Kino
WO IST COLETTI? (D 1913, Max Mack)
March 20, 6 pm
Wiesbaden Caligari
MENSCHEN AM SONNTAG (D 1930, Robert & Curt Siodmack)
April 17, 8 pm
Darmstadt, Staatstheater
FAUST (F.W. Murnau)
April 24, 6.30 pm
Wiesbaden Caligari
DAS CABINET DES DR. CALIGARI (D 1920 Robert Wiene)
May 10
Frankfurt Filmmuseum
DIE ERBSCHAFT VON NEW YORK
Mai 22
Wiesbaden Caligari
DER GOLEM (D 1920 Paul Wegener)
May 30
Frankfurt Filmmuseum
DIE DAME MIT DER MASKE
June 20
Wiesbaden Caligari
DIE AUGEN DER MUMIE MA (D 1918 Ernst Lubitsch)
July 10
Wiesbaden Caligari
DIE ERBSCHAFT VON NEW YORK
September 6
Wiesbaden, Murnau Kino
DER KLEINE MUCK (D 1921, Wilhwelm Prager)
September 15
Bebra Lokschuppen
DER GENERAL (Buster Keaton)
September 25 8pm
Wiesbaden Caligari
ORLAC's HÄNDE (Ö 1924 Robert Wiene)
October 17 5.30 pm
Wiesbaden Caligari
GROßSTADT SCHMETTERLINGE
November 8 6 pm
Frankfurt Filmmuseum
DER FÜRST VON PAPPENHEIM
November 28 6 pm
Wiesbaden Caligari
DIE STRASSE (D 1923 Robert Grune)
December 18 6 pm
Wiesbaden Caligari
MORAL (D 1928 Willi Wolff)
SELECTON OF PAST PROJECTS
- Music für silent films, Theater FRANZ, Wiesbaden 2023
- CARMEN w Silvia Sauer, Wiesbaden 2022
- METROPOLIS, Haus Der Medien, Stuttgart 2022
- DVD Bauten, Bürger & ein Bembel, Frankfurt imagefilms 2021
- KAFKA GEHT INS KINO w Hanns Zischler, Nürnberg 2018
- KINO VARIETÉ RHEIN-MAIN w Silvia Sauer 2018/19
- LECTURE & FILM: ERNST LUBITSCH, Filmmuseum Frankfurt, 2016/17
- Goethe Film Week 2016, Kairo
- SUMURUN (Lubitsch) w Valentin Garvie (trumpet, Ensemble Modern) Nürnberg 2015
- Festival "Bewusste Halluzinationen - der filmische Surrealismus", Frankfurt / Wiesbaden 2014
- STEAMBOAT BILL JR. (B. Keaton) w Silvia Sauer (voice & live-electronics), Wiesbaden 2014
- DIE HOCHBAHNKATASTROPHE (Valy Arnheim) w Silke Eberhard (altosax & clarinet), 2012
- French Avantgarde-films w Uli Böttcher (live-electronics), Goethe-Institut Skopje 2011
- DR. MABUSE (Fritz Lang) w C. Thewes (trombone), StummFilmMusik-Festival Erlangen, 2010
- Films by Murnau in Romania, 2008
- THE NAVIGATOR (Buster Keaton) w Christof Thewes (trombone), 2008
- DVD "Nitrospektive", music for rare silent commercials, 2008
- Music for the contemporary film UN COEUR GELÉ EN ÉTÉ by Mikko Linnemann, 2006
- DAS CABINET DES DR. CALIGARI w C. (tb) & Jörg Fischer (dr), St. Wendeler Jazztage 2005
- JUHA by AKI KAURISMÄKI (Finnland, 1999) w C. L. Huebsch (tuba, drums), Cottbus, 2004
- French Silent Film-Avantgarde w Uli Boettcher, OPENING-FESTIVAL Trier a.o.,-November 2003
- THE KID by C. Chaplin with Rudi Mahall (bcl), Caligari Wiesbaden, December 2001
- Music for avantgarde-films, FILM-KUNST-MUSEUM Ulm w Xu Fengxia & Luigi Archetti, 2001
- FRENCH AVANTGARDE FILMS & live-music, Jazztage Freiberg/Sachsen 2001
- MAN RAY SHORTS & electro-acoustic music w Oberg, Uli Boettcher a. Axel Schrepfer
- Retrospektive Man Ray, Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt/M. 2000
- ALFRED HARTH & U. O. play music for SILENT AVANTGARDE FILMS 1999
- WANDLUNGEN film / music / dance - perf. w Ch. Schlegel, Schliemann & F. Kwiatkowski, 1994
- Music for the experimental - short MEDITATION MACHINE by Franz Kluge, Wiesbaden, 1992
- SINFONIA METAGATROPOLI film / music - perf. w "Berlin - die Sinfonie der Großstadt", 1993
SOME REVIEWSOn the ground floor Uwe Oberg played Jazz and improvised music on the piano for the classic silent film "The Electric House" by Buster Keaton - as if nobody else had ever composed music for this 22 minutes-gem. FRANKFURTER RUNDSCHAU Nov. 2017
...exitingly Oberg coloured the dark and scary moods of the film and therefore intensified the funny moments perfectly...
NEUE OSNABRUECKER ZEITUNG
...with Oberg’s music the films get more energy and space… MAERKISCHE ODERZEITUNG
...Oberg’s piano, his playing on the strings, the plucked passages condense with the electronic sonority to an unique collage,which refers to the make of the dadaistic / surrealistic films. An experience for all senses.
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG
