Acid Pauli & A Slice of Musical Utopia at Detect Classical Festival
Following our initial coverage, we dive deeper into the heart of this year's Detect Classic Festival by spotlighting one of its most mesmerizing and innovative performers: Acid Pauli. The German producer and DJ, born Martin Gretschmann, didn't just play at the festival; he immersed himself in its very ethos, delivering a trio of performances that blurred the lines between electronic music, classical, and pure improvisation.
For the uninitiated, an Acid Pauli set is a genre-defying pilgrimage. He weaves together deep house, techno, and psychedelic soundscapes, often infused with a global sensibility that is entirely his own. The result is a deeply hypnotic and, at times, melancholic journey that feels both introspective and expansive.
Acid Pauli’s presence at Detect was a masterclass in collaboration. He performed two unique live sets within the festival's iconic church setting. The first featured an intimate dialogue with double bassist Johannes Keller, while the second was a grand-scale improvisation with the full Detect Ensemble, comprising saxophone, trombone, double bass, percussion, and vibraphone.
His method was fascinating. Acting as a sonic architect, he used loop machines to record the musicians in real-time, layering their phrases to build intricate, evolving soundscapes. For about 40 minutes each time, a delicate dance unfolded: he would record them, play it back, and they would mirror and add to the composition, creating a living, breathing piece of music that was born in the moment and cherished just as fleetingly.
Beyond the church, he also delivered a more traditional—though no less inventive—DJ set, which included a daring 10-minute experimental transition into the live performance of the Berlin-based duo AFAR, showcasing a fluidity that is rare on festival stages.
An Interview with Acid Pauli
Q: You attended the Detect Classic Festival 2024 as a guest, and now you’re performing here this year. How did that come about?
"The festival is not far from my place, and when I saw that JakoJako would be performing – and I had a free Saturday night – I went with some friends. I was blown away by her performance with the Detect Ensemble and thought to myself, 'Wow, this is amazing. I would love to play here.' At the time, I was working on a remix for AFAR and exchanging messages with Joseph and Elena, who are involved in the booking, so everything came together quite naturally."
Q: What was it about the festival that stood out to you, and what do you think makes Detect special?
"The space is really amazing, and the size is perfect. It’s not too big – quite unpretentious and very relaxed. The floors are created by different collectives who put so much love into them. There’s so much to discover. And then, of course, the music. It sits at the intersection of electronic and classical music, which is something I’ve been exploring myself over the years."
Q: So, you mentioned that you were blown away by JakoJako last year. What about this year? Any performances that inspired you?
"I loved AFAR’s performance on Saturday night. I was also happy to catch Saraabb, Aurora Oktett, Max Cooper, and Jan Jelinek – all of whom were really inspiring to see. Switchermachine on the Kokon floor was great, too. And after my set on Saturday night, I had a nice dance to Geju and Sara Farina."
Echoes from the Crowd: The Detect Vibe Through Other Eyes
The spirit of community and discovery that Acid Pauli highlighted was a recurring theme. We caught up with the duo AFAR—whose krautrock-inflected, improvisational electronic set was a festival highlight—to get their perspective.
Q: What makes playing at Detect Classic Festival special for you?
Joseph: "Detect Classic Festival is a gathering of open minds and open ears, which can create a truly unique live moment... It’s a creation happening on stage, but it’s also happening in the audience, and then it reflects back and forth. That connecting moment... becomes a melting point. I’ve had some especially strong feelings about that here at Detect."
When asked for their own recommendations, the duo echoed the festival's eclectic nature:
Elena: "O/Y. He’s an artist who really lives his music. He experiments with genres but keeps it ravey at the same time."
Joseph: "Farida Amaru is another one... She builds this wall of sound with the bass, and it creates what I’d call a kind of spiritual balloon you can really dive into... It’s something you have to see live."
Elena: "Yes, exactly... when you experience it, it’s just like: 'yes, we can do all kinds of music we want!' That’s empowering."
A Little Slice of Utopia
Last year, AFAR described DCF as "a little slice of utopia." We asked them to elaborate on what that means.
Elena: "For me it’s the freedom of music making. You have all these artists from different backgrounds and styles, and everyone is welcome. You can hear classical music without needing any etiquette, or go to a rave even if it’s your first time. It’s a place where you can just be who you are and experience music in its purest form."
This sentiment perfectly captures the magic of Detect. It’s a festival where a former punk musician can build cathedrals of sound with a classical ensemble in a church, where the boundaries between performer and audience blur, and where the joy of musical discovery is the ultimate currency. In the hypnotic journey of Acid Pauli and the empowering words of his peers, we find the true soul of this very special gathering.
Acid Pauli Photo Sophia Hegewald
Photos below all by Lucie Schulze
