Negotiating Cultural Allies: American Music in Darmstadt, 1946-1956

Abstract

In the context of postwar and Cold War cultural politics, the Darmstädter Ferienkurse für Neue Musik set the stage for Germany's ambivalent reception of American music in the decades following World War II. This article weighs the catalytic role of American music in Darmstadt between 1946 and 1956; traces the relationships among U. S. cultural officers, German patrons, and representatives of American music in Darmstadt; and describes events in Darmstadt that led to a growing interest in American experimental music in West Germany. An English translation of Wolfgang Edward Rebner's 1954 Ferienkurse lecture "American Experimental Music" is included as an appendix.