Unicult: Review of the cult concerts in Saarbrücken of the 1970s

Unicult: Review of the cult concerts in Saarbrücken of the 1970s

On January 12, 2025, a remarkable exhibition starts in Saarbrücken that highlights the history of Unicult, an important cultural organizer of the 70s and 80s. This exhibition, which runs in the Garelly house under the title "Unikult Proudly Present: Saarland pop history (s)", is part of a comprehensive research and memory project of the POPORAGE Saarland e.V., with the support of the Union Foundation and the Historical Museum Saar. The exhibition will be officially opened on January 10, 2025 with a vernissage at 6:30 p.m.

Unicult was founded in 1976 by Werner "Goldi" Balzert in the cultural department of the student council of the University of Saarland. Since then, Unikult has organized impressive 120 concerts in which numerous bands that later belonged to the cultural scene. The best known include Depeche Mode and R.E.M., which were seen in their early career in Saarbrücken. Depeche Mode, for example, played in front of 400 spectators at the time and received a fee of 5650 marks. R.E.M. appeared in the city, even before the hit "Losing My Religion" circulated.

anniversary and exhibition

The exhibition not only shows original hand -signed concert posters of artists such as Ina Deter and Level 42, but also numerous devotional items. Among other things, visitors can discover a towel with a musician make-up, stickers and information and historical boards. The curators Stefan Emrich, Uwe Kartmann, Marlene Schweigerer-Kartmann, Jutta Haag and Peter Meyer make sure that the makers of Unikult also describe their stories in personal stories.

The period of the exhibition extends from January 11th to February 2, 2025. Entry to the exhibition is free, which makes the offer accessible to a wide audience. This initiative is not only a look back at the extraordinary history of Unicult, but also a tribute to the living music scene of the Saarland.

background and meaning

The project is supported by numerous partners, including the University of the Saarland, the Saarland State Archives and the Saarland Museum Association. This cooperation also contributed to the creation of an accompanying book, which will be published on January 10, 2025 in the Conte publishing house. Unicult existed until 1991 and was not only known for concerts, but also for readings, cabaret evenings and balls. In particular, the event of a solidarity campaign with the band The Snobs saved the young organization for a financial failure.

The Poprat Saarland has made a valuable contribution to the cultural history of the region with the project. The exhibition and the book now serve as an important documentary and memorial for an era that sustainably shaped the Saarland music and culture scene. The support from local sponsors such as the Media, Saartoto, Energy and Sparkasse Finanzgruppe underlines the cultural importance of this project.

For those interested, not only a piece of music history comes alive when visiting the exhibition, but also the passion and commitment of the many people behind UniCult becomes noticeable. The warmth in dealing with and the ambitious organization of the concerts are still part of the heritage that has left Unicult.

For more information about the history of Unikult and upcoming events, the website of SR can be found at SR href = "https://www.poprat-saarland.de/unikult/"> Poprat Saarland or the university of the Saarland at uni-saarland.de become.