Offene Türen (German for "Opening Doors") is the eighth solo album by German keyboardist Hans-Joachim Roedelius, best known for his work with Cluster, Harmonia, and Aquarello. The music of Offene Türen is more avant-garde than other Roedelius solo albums of the 1970s and 1980s. It can best be compared to Cluster's Curiosum which was released by Sky Records the previous year.[1][2]
Recording and release
Offene Türen was recorded at Roedelius' home studio and at Erpelstudio, Vienna, Austria.[3] The album was first released by Sky Records on vinyl LP in 1982.[4] Two tracks, "Besucher Im Traum" and "Auf der Höhe", were included on the Sky Records compilation Auf leisen Sohlen - Das Beste Von H. J. Roedelius (1978 - 1982) which was first released on LP in 1984 and reissued on CD in 1994.[5][6] This represented the first time any tracks from Offene Türen appeared on CD. The complete album was released on CD by Nepenthe Music in December, 2009.[7] The reissue includes liner notes by Stephen Iliffe,[8] the author of Roedelius' biography, Painting with Sound: The Life and Music of Hans-Joachim Roedelius[2] and was remastered by Robert Rich.[8]
The review for the Babyblaue Prog website, written (in German) by Jochen Rindfrey, describes the album (in part):
"...Offene Türen shows a more avant-garde side. The pieces in their brevity are often sketchy, acting as sound miniatures [...] The instrumentation is minimal with origins in the Selbstportrait series, with sound effects backing the Farfisa organ. There are also songs like 'Allemande,' which sounds a bit like a burlesque folk dance, or 'Abenteuerliche Begegnung' and 'Besucher im Traum' which resemble in their romantic mood more typical Roedelius music."[1]
