Biography
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Years Active
1969 – 2001 (31 years)
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Founded In
München, Bayern, Germany
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Members
- Daniel Fichelscher (1973 – present)
- Florian Fricke
- Frank Fiedler
- Holger Trülzsch
- Klaus Wiese
There are multiple bands named Popol Vuh: 1) A krautrock band from Germany. 2) A progressive rock band from Norway later renamed Popol Ace.
1) Popol Vuh was a proto-ambient / experimental / krautrock band from Germany founded by Florian Fricke in 1970 together with Holger Trulzsch (percussion) and Frank Fiedler (electronics). Other important members during the next two decades included Conny Veit, Daniel Fichelscher and Robert Eliscu.
It began with an electronic approach as heard on first album "Affenstunde", inspired by the invention of the Moog synthesizer. This continued for only one more album, "In den Gärten Pharaos", before Fricke largely abandoned electronic instruments in favour of piano-led compositions from 1972's "Hosianna Mantra" forward. This album also marked the start of exploring overtly religious themes rather than a more generally spiritual feeling within the music. The group evolved to include all kinds of instruments: wind, percussion and strings, electric and acoustic alike, combined to convey a mystical aura that made their music spiritual and introspective.
Popul Vuh influenced many other bands from Europe with their uniquely soft but elaborate instrumentations, that took inspiration from Tibet, Africa, and Precolombian America. They created dream-like soundscapes along with psychedelic walls of sound, and are considered by some to be precursors of contemporary world music, as well of new age music and ambient.
The band contributed soundtracks to the films of Werner Herzog, including "Nosferatu", "Aguirre, the Wrath of God", "Fitzcarraldo", and "The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser", in which Fricke appeared.
Florian Fricke died in Munich on December 29, 2001, and the group disbanded.
In October 2003 Klaus Schulze wrote "Florian was and remains to be an important forerunner of contemporary ethnic and religious music. He chose electronic music and his big Moog to free himself from the restraints of traditional music, but soon discovered that he didn't get a lot out of it and opted for the acoustic path instead. Here, he went on to create a new world, which Werner Herzog loves so much, transforming the thought patterns of electronic music into the language of acoustic ethno music."
2) Popol Vuh is one of the most infuential progressive rock bands from Norway. The band was formed in 1971, but had to change their name in 1975 because of a conflict with the German Popol Vuh. They later renamed themselves Popol Ace.
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