With a total of four different excursions, Hans Schlosser, former VDT board member and Düsseldorf resident with a very good knowledge of the area, invited people to visit cultural institutions during tmt31. This time, only excursions that could be reached by public transport were considered, as long bus journeys together were to be avoided. But Düsseldorf had enough potential for four exciting excursions with a close industry connection!

The first destination was the new campus of the Düsseldorf University of Applied Sciences and here the Department of Media. The completely redesigned studio and measurement rooms, some of which were created using elaborate room-in-room technology and equipped with state-of-the-art studio and measurement technology, impressed the participants during the guided tour by Prof. Dr. Leckschat. Wave field synthesis and all immersive systems can be worked with here.

Acoustic measurement techniques and the development of digital circuits complete the diverse possibilities for teaching and research. In this way, students of the degree program "Sound and Image" can be optimally prepared for their future careers together with the Robert Schumann University of Applied Sciences.

Three churches and their organs in the center of the former residential city of Düsseldorf were the destination of the second excursion. As a so-called backyard church, which was not allowed to be seen from the street, the Neander Church was built in 1687 in the Reformed Baroque style. Joachim Neander, who gave the church its name, worked as a Reformed preacher in the lime caves in nearby Erkrath, among other places, and thus gave his name to the valley, which is world-famous for its prehistoric man finds and through which the Düssel River also flows.

In 1965, the first organ built by the Rieger organ-building company with Spanish trumpets in the facade was installed in the Neanderkirche. Organist Sebastian Klein presented his instrument with all the innovative possibilities for that time and ended with an improvisation on the song "Lobe den Herrn" composed by Joachim Neander.

The Maxkirche, built in 1668 as a monastery church of the Franciscans, captivates with its still preserved baroque organ case into which the Klais company installed a completely mechanical organ in 2008 using existing old materials. This organ, on which Felix Mendelsohn enjoyed playing during his time as music director in Düsseldorf, even still has hand bellows.

Cantor Markus Belmann concluded his inspiring organ presentation with an organ sonata by Mendelsohn-Bartholdy.

The neo-Romanesque basilica of St. Antonius has the most modern and largest organ in Düsseldorf. More than 90 stops, distributed among the gallery organ, choir organ and the swell in the crossing dome produce a tremendous sound. In 2018, the total organ work was completed by the organ building company Mühleisen. The electric action allows not only many electronic effects but also a variable position of the console throughout the church. Despite its size, this organ also has fine, quiet tones, which come primarily from the Fernwerk, positioned at a height of 28 meters.

A good opportunity for organist Markus Hinz to showcase his skills and those of the organ with the Toccata by Charles Widor.

The third excursion took the participants to the Tonhalle Düsseldorf. Built in 1926 as the largest planetarium in Europe, the domed building was destroyed by bombing in 1943 and rebuilt in 1949 as the Rhine Hall with the means of the time. In 1975 the core renovation took place, but the acoustic problems of a dome were ignored at that time and the "knocking spirit" moved into the concert events. After unsuccessful attempts to exorcise the "ghost", a unique acoustic concept by the company Peutz was installed in the dome in 2005, a "rectangular" room that met all the requirements of a modern concert hall.

At the beginning, the history of the hall was explained to the participants by means of a presentation and then the acoustic concept was explained by Dipl.-Phys. Klaus-H. Lorenz-Kierakiewitz from Peutz Consult GmbH. With much curiosity, the participants then went into the hall and behind the wall cladding and up to the top of the dome to experience the acoustic concept for themselves and also to perceive impulse responses from the hall itself. A tour on the roof of the hall offered a wonderful panoramic view of the Rhine and the skyline of Düsseldorf.

The fourth excursion was dedicated to the Robert Schumann University. Here, as in Detmold, a training program for sound engineers was initiated by Prof. Dr. Trautwein in 1949. After difficult phases from the conservatory to the Institute of the Rhineland Music College in Cologne to the independent Robert Schumann University in 1987, the Institute for Music and Media was then created. Rector Prof. Wippermann welcomed the participants in the Partika hall and Prof. Dagmar Birwe showed the OB van, mobile picture control room and the studio in the Partika hall. By cab we then went to the external campus at Georg-Glock-Str. Here, after the former University of Applied Sciences moved out, the old rooms are being renovated and new rooms are being created. A new chamber music hall with up to 500 seats is also planned. Soon there will be enough sound and image studios for the more than 200 students on the various media degree courses.

Studio at Robert-Schuhmann-Hochschule

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