In Leder

The publication shows the series of works In Leder (In Leather) by artist Käthe Kruse and allows us to hear the newly created sounds of the leather-wrapped instruments. The starting point was the drum kit that Käthe Kruse played in the iconic band ‘Die Tödliche Doris’ (Deadly Doris) in the 1980s and was the first of the instruments to be encased in leather. This was followed by all the other musical instruments used, such as guitar, bass, violin, clarinet, recorder, rattles, accordion, cymbals, kettle, a children’s xylophone and claves, which are now carefully covered in leather and have become objects in their own right, developing new sound spaces.

The leather works are shown both as art objects in exhibitions and played as completely new-sounding instruments in the performance Lieder in Leder (Songs in Leather). The e-book contains sound examples that can be played interactively, as well as a video of the live performance at the Berlinische Galerie. Kruse sings half-hidden in a leather column, accompanied by her daughter Edda Kruse Rosset on the original leather-covered drum kit; occasionally, the lyrics are also performed in French by her second daughter Klara Kruse Rosset. Lieder in Leder are based on the short a cappella songs from the legendary and now highly prized box set Chöre & Soli (Choirs & Solos) by ‘Die Tödliche Doris’, published in 1983 by gelbe MUSIK, Berlin and PURE FREUDE, Düsseldorf.