Latest News

Sheet music collection from the HfK attic

Packed away in boxes in the attic of our university of the arts were many sheet music scores, some of which had been stored there for decades. Now, during a major reorganization, these boxes have been dusted off and opened. We also found a considerable number of rock, pop, tango, and jazz arrangements for various combo lineups. Of course, we immediately "snatched them up" and added them to our ever-growing sheet music collection.

FaMI intern in January

Ana-Lucia Deterding is in her third year of training to become a media and information services specialist (FaMI) at the municipal library in Nordenham. From January 12 to 23, she will be completing a two-week internship with us as part of her training. We are happy to give her an insight into our day-to-day work and look forward to her support!

Report about KKI on "buten un binnen" (Radio Bremen) on December 27.

On December 27, 2025, the daily local news program "buten un binnen" on the public broadcaster "Radio Bremen" reported on the 50th anniversary of the Klaus Kuhnke Institute. Julia Köhn's report includes original sound bites from the institute's director, Nico Thom, and provides current insights into the archive rooms.
Link to the video: https://youtu.be/JZH2BvGdKaM?si=vxem_PvjZU2m-hNB

KKI Music Exchange at the HfK Winter Market on December 14

The KKI is once again participating in the Winter Market at the University of the Arts Bremen this year. It will take place on Sunday, December 14, from 3 to 8 p.m. in the Music Department (Dechanatstraße 13-15). We will be offering our duplicates (vinyl records, CDs, books, etc.) for sale at bargain prices in the form of a music exchange. So if you're still looking for Christmas gifts, you're sure to find something here.
More information about the winter market can be found here: https://www.hfk-bremen.de/en/events/winter-market/14689

The Bremen Archives Working Group visits the KKI on December 9

Our esteemed colleagues from the Bremen Archives Working Group honored us with a visit and held their last meeting of the year at the KKI and the University of the Arts. Nico Thom gave the distinguished archivists a tour of the premises, showed them the collections, and reported on the KKI's 50th anniversary.
More information about the Bremen Archives Working Group: https://www.bremer-archive.de

Celebration of the 50th anniversary of KKI

2025 is a year of celebration for us. We are celebrating our 50th anniversary! In 1975, Klaus Kuhnke, Manfred Miller, and Peter Schulze founded the “Archive for Popular Music” in Bremen, which later became the “Klaus Kuhnke Institute for Popular Music.” Since 1991, i.e., for 34 years now, it has been part of the Bremen University of the Arts.
To mark this occasion, an anniversary celebration will be held on Tuesday, November 25, 2025, at 8 p.m. in the concert hall of the University of the Arts (Dechanatstraße 13-15).
The plan is to have a colorful and cheerful evening with good music and entertainment in a dignified setting. Musical greetings from the ranks of the HfK are planned, as well as humorous and, in some cases, thoughtful speeches. Friends, companions, and supporters of the KKI are cordially invited to attend. The event is, of course, open to anyone who is interested.

Recently

KKI director to appear on westendRADIO on November 13

KKI director Nico Thom was once again a guest at the Kulturwerkstatt westend in Bremen-Walle. Three years ago, there was a conversation with the experienced presenter Windy Jacob on westendRADIO, which the two have now followed up on. The focus of the lively conversation was on the KKI anniversary and the upcoming 50th anniversary celebrations. The music samples were selected by Nico Thom.
You can listen to the broadcast here: https://www.kultur-bremen.de/content/nico-thom-zu-gast-50-jahre-klaus-kuhnke-institut-kki-f%C3%BCr-popul%C3%A4re-musik-westendradio

Music collection acquired from Uwe Warnken

Through the mediation of Michael Schmidt from the Bremen Community Foundation, we received the music collection of Uwe Warnken. The collection includes 250 mini discs with classic US jazz recordings as well as recordings of jazz concerts from Bremen and Hamburg. We also received several jazz books, vinyl records, and playback devices. We would like to thank the Bremen Community Foundation for their support!
More information: https://www.buergerstiftung-bremen.de/de/home.html

KKI shareholder Richard Weize has turned 80... and is as active as ever

Our friend, supporter, and co-partner Richard Weize turned 80 on August 4. On August 23, a birthday party was held in his honor with illustrious guests. One might assume that after a long and fulfilling life, he would slowly but surely retire from the music business and reap and enjoy the fruits of his labor. But far from it. After selling his label Bear Family Records a good 10 years ago, he continues to run two other labels or publishing companies called "... and more bears" and "RWA - Richard Weize Archives". The tireless music publisher/editor/publicist has recently published three books (each with an accompanying CD), which we would like to briefly mention here.
Firstly, an anniversary volume has been published under the simple title "Richard Weize 80. The Story Of A Record Producer 1975 - 2025", which pays tribute to the "old bear".
He has also published two books dealing with jazz music from 1955/56 and 1960:
"Caterina Valente & Chet Baker. Just You, Just Me" documents the collaboration between the singer and the trumpeter, who recorded and toured together with the Kurt Edelhagen Orchestra.
Dave Samuelson's "After the Riot at Newport. The Garden Party" is about the Nashville All-Stars and their concert recording from 1960, which was released on record by RCA Victor and has become a collector's item.
More information here:
https://andmorebears.com/de

KKI conference on local/regional music history in October

On Saturday, October 18, the KKI is organizing a conference entitled "History & Present of Popular Music in Bremen & the surrounding area" between 2pm and 7pm. The venue will be the Chamber Music Hall of the University of the Arts. In terms of content, the regional music history will be discussed, as it can be traced through artists, bands, clubs, festivals and labels as well as other multipliers and organizations.
The conference is open to all interested parties and free of charge.

Program:
14:00-14:20 _ Nico Thom: Local & regional music historiography using the example of Bremen & the surrounding area
14:20-14:40 _ Katrin Dietl & Tine Niggemann: History, present & future of Pop Office Bremen
14:40-15:00 _ Friedel Muders: Fuego – (Online) Label & publisher for Indie Rock & Alternative Pop
15:00-15:20 _ Peter Cronemeyer: Laika Records – Label & publisher for jazz & world music
15:20-15:40 _ Gregor Hennig: Schlager star Ronny, Studio Nord & my own musical projects
15:40-16:00 _ Break
16:00-16:20 _ Andrea Rösler: The Musikszene Bremen association & its projects
16:20-16:40 _ Peter Schulze: Concert productions & live recordings from Radio Bremen until the turn of the millennium
16:40-17:00 _ V. B. Schulze: 50 years of the Bremen Musicians' Initiative (MIB)
17:00-17:20 _ Klaus Friedrichs & Jürgen Thomas: The Rock Cyclus Bremerhaven Association
17:20-17:40 _ Break
17:40-18:00 _ Conrad Schwenke: Stadtlauscher.de – Online platform by & for musicians & cultural professionals from Bremen
18:00-18:20 _ Natalie Reinsch: Swing music & swing dancing in Bremen during the Nazi era
18:20-18:40 _ Willy Schwarz: World music in Bremen, as exemplified by the City Immigrant Orchestra
18:40-19:00 _ Iris Hinze & Filip Roolfing: Clubverstärker e.V. – Voice of live music venues & live music organizers with cultural & social aspirations in Bremen & the surrounding area

Annual meeting of the Pop Archive Network at KKI

The annual meeting of the "Archivnetzwerk Pop" (Pop Archive Network) took place on October 9-10 at our KKI. We exchanged information about the latest developments in our institutions and discussed further cooperation. Guests included colleagues from Berlin, Eisenach, Freiburg i.B., Graz, Gronau, Leipzig, and Nortorf. After taking a closer look at the KKI as the host institution (in its anniversary year), we visited the Bremen Radio Museum together and were given a guided tour.
Further information here:
https://www.archivnetzwerk-pop.de
https://www.bremer-rundfunkmuseum.de

Small KKI double exhibition in fall/winter 2025

From October 1 to December 31, 2025, we will be showing a small double exhibition designed by two interns.
Janne Andersen explored the self-selected topic "Sweet vacation dreams within your own four walls: Advertising singles from West German airlines in the 1960s and 70s".
André Prange has devoted himself to a solo artist. His part of the exhibition is entitled: "'I don't sing lies!' Petra Pascal – an (almost) forgotten singer between pop songs and long radio nights".
The double exhibition is set up in front of the entrance to the KKI and can be viewed there, as well as shortly in digital form in our online magazine "S[æ]itenanschläge".

Continuing education student from Hamburg completes long-term internship
(October to January)

Marcus Bühler is currently completing a postgraduate study program in library and information management at the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (HAW). Prior to that, he completed a degree in musicology at the University of Hamburg and conducted research for his master's thesis at the KKI archive, among other places. He will now be doing a long-term internship with us between October 2025 and January 2026 as part of his continuing education. We are happy to give him an insight into our daily work and look forward to his support!