The German Film Orchestra Babelsberg (also known as ''Deutsches Filmorchester Babelsberg'' or DFOB in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

) is a

symphony orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, ce ...

and music studio based in

Potsdam Potsdam () is the capital and, with around 183,000 inhabitants, largest city of the German state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream of B ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. It was founded in 1918 as Ufa-Sinfonieorchester and was re-established in 1993 by Klaus Peter Beyer under its current name. The orchestra derives its name from the legendary

Babelsberg Studios Babelsberg Film Studio (german: Filmstudio Babelsberg), located in Potsdam-Babelsberg outside Berlin, Germany, is the second oldest large-scale film studio in the world only preceded by the Danish Nordisk Film (est. 1906), producing films since ...

Potsdam-Babelsberg Babelsberg () is the largest quarter (''Stadtteil'') of Potsdam, the capital city of the German state of Brandenburg. The affluent neighbourhood named after a small hill on the Havel river is famous for Babelsberg Palace and Park, part of the Palac ...

, a city part of

today, where notable films such as ''

Metropolis A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural center for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications. A big c ...

'', ''

Dr. Mabuse Dr. Mabuse is a fictional character created by Norbert Jacques in his 1921 novel ('Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler'), and his 1932 follow-up novel ''Das Testament des Dr. Mabuse'' (1932). The character was made famous by three films about the character ...

'' and ''

The Blue Angel ''The Blue Angel'' (german: Der blaue Engel) is a 1930 German musical comedy-drama film directed by Josef von Sternberg, and starring Marlene Dietrich, Emil Jannings and Kurt Gerron. Written by Carl Zuckmayer, Karl Vollmöller and Rober ...

, Inglorious Basterds'' or Bridge of Spies were produced The Film Orchestra frequently presents live performances of silent films and other concerts and is very active in recording music for the television, gaming, music and film industries. Additionally, the orchestra has collaborated over 800 times collaborates with prominent artists in popular and jazz music on crossover projects. It has worked with artists like

Shania Twain Eilleen Regina "Shania" Twain ( , ; née Edwards; born August 28, 1965) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She has sold over 100 million records, making her the best-selling female artist in country music history and one of the best-s ...

( Up!),

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

(

A New Day Has Come ''A New Day Has Come'' is the seventh English-language and eighteenth studio album by Canadian singer Celine Dion, released by Sony Music Entertainment on 22 March 2002. It was her first new studio album since 1998's Christmas album ''These Are ...

) and

Bryan Adams Bryan Guy Adams (born 5 November 1959) is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, composer, and photographer. He has been cited as one of the best-selling music artists of all time, and is estimated to have sold between 75 million and mor ...

(

Colour Me Kubrick ''Colour Me Kubrick: A True...ish Story'' (released in the U.S. as ''Color Me Kubrick'') is a 2005 comedy-drama film directed by Brian W. Cook and released in 2005. The film draws its inspiration from actual events. Starring John Malkovich as ...

). It appeared on several albums the German Metal Band

Rammstein Rammstein (, "ramming stone") is a German Neue Deutsche Härte band formed in Berlin in 1994. The band's lineup—consisting of lead vocalist Till Lindemann, lead guitarist Richard Kruspe, rhythm guitarist Paul Landers, bassist Oliver Riedel, ...

, like " Mutter" (2001), "

Reise, Reise ''Reise, Reise'' (; a German '' military wake-up call'', literally "(a)rise, (a)rise") is the fourth studio album by Neue Deutsche Härte band Rammstein. It was released on 27 September 2004 through Universal Music in Germany and followed shortl ...

"(2004) and "

Liebe ist für alle da ''Liebe ist für alle da'' (, "Love is there for everyone"), often abbreviated to LIFAD, is the sixth studio album by German Neue Deutsche Härte band Rammstein. It was released through Universal Music in Europe on 16 October 2009, the United Ki ...

" (2009), and several

Max Richter Max Richter (; ; born 22 March 1966) is a German-born British composer and pianist. He works within postminimalist and contemporary classical styles. Richter is classically trained, having graduated in composition from the University of Edinbur ...

Albums. It has also worked with the German Progressive Rock Band

Karat The fineness of a precious metal object (coin, bar, jewelry, etc.) represents the weight of ''fine metal'' therein, in proportion to the total weight which includes alloying base metals and any impurities. Alloy metals are added to increase hardne ...

on its 1997 album "Balance" and its live album "25 Jahre Karat" (25 Years of Karat, 2001). In 2012 the Orchestra took part in creation of sixth

Avantasia Avantasia is a German supergroup metal opera project created by Tobias Sammet, vocalist of the band Edguy. It has been characterized as a rock opera, as it features the contributions of various vocalists and musicians and it consists of concept ...

's studio album "

The Mystery of Time ''The Mystery of Time'' is the sixth full-length album by German Tobias Sammet's rock opera project Avantasia. The album was released on 26 April 2013. This is the first Avantasia release to feature the German Film Orchestra Babelsberg (the s ...

". In 2015 it backed

Ronan Harris Ronan Harris (born 14 June 1967) is the founding member of the electronic music project VNV Nation. He is credited with the songwriting, production, lyrical and vocal aspects of the band's music. In the years preceding VNV Nation's debut album, h ...

VNV Nation VNV Nation is an Irish alternative electronic project led by Ronan Harris in the roles of singer, songwriter, and producer. VNV Nation's sound combines lyrics with sounds that ranges from melodic industrial dance anthems, to haunting ballads ...

's Resonance: Music For Orchestra Vol. 1, which was a No. 7 hit in Germany, on the mainstream

GfK Entertainment Charts The GfK Entertainment charts are the official music charts in Germany and are gathered and published by GfK Entertainment (formerly Media Control and Media Control GfK International), a subsidiary of GfK, on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindust ...

. The German Film Orchestra Babelsberg appears on more than 1.000 film productions, such as "

Arlo the Alligator Boy ''Arlo the Alligator Boy'' is a 2021 American 2D animated adventure musical film directed by Ryan Crego in his directorial debut. The film is led by Michael J. Woodard and Mary Lambert in their debut acting roles as Arlo and Bertie respectivel ...

", " Ad Astra" , "

Tides Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables can ...

", "

Love, Death & Robots ''Love, Death & Robots'' (stylized as ''LOVE DEATH + R⬮BOTS'', and represented in emoji form as ❤️❌🤖) is an adult animated anthology streaming television series created by Tim Miller and streaming on Netflix. Produced by Blur Studio ...

", " Sleepless", " Timeless", "

Alone in Berlin ''Every Man Dies Alone'' or ''Alone in Berlin'' (german: Jeder stirbt für sich allein) is a 1947 novel by German author Hans Fallada. It is based on the true story of working-class husband and wife Otto and Elise Hampel who, acting alone, beca ...

", Hitman: Agent 47", Escobar: Paradise Lost", " Hector and the Search for Happiness", " The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared", " The Congress", " Anonymous", "

Little Big Panda ''Little Big Panda'' (), (German language, German: Kleiner starker Panda) is a 2011 animation, animated children's film, children's family film directed by Michael Schoemann. A international co-production, co-production between China, Germany, Fra ...

Ninja Assassin ''Ninja Assassin'' is a 2009 neo-noir martial arts film directed by James McTeigue. The story was written by Matthew Sand, with a screenplay by J. Michael Straczynski. The film stars South Korean pop musician Rain as a disillusioned assassin l ...

", Laura´s Star" and "

Snow White "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" is a 19th-century German fairy tale that is today known widely across the Western world. The Brothers Grimm published it in 1812 in the first edition of their collection ''Grimms' Fairy Tales'' and numbered as Ta ...

". The orchestra also produces music for computer games, like "

Balan Wonderworld is a 2021 platform game principally developed by Arzest and published by Square Enix. Assuming the role of two children guided by a magical being called Balan, the player explores twelve worlds themed after the hearts of troubled individuals. ...

" and "

Final Fantasy is a Japanese video game, Japanese science fantasy anthology media franchise created by Hironobu Sakaguchi and developed and owned by Square Enix (formerly Square (video game company), Square). The franchise centers on a series of fantasy and ...

: Brave Exvius". From 1993 the studios of the orchestra were located in the former radio quarters of the GDR, at Nalepastraße in Oberschöneweide, Berlin. In December, 2007 the orchestra was able to move "back to the roots" in Babelsberg, into a building in the area of Film Studio Babelsberg. The German Film Orchestra's current Chief Conductor is Scott Lawton, who assumed his post in 1999. The former conductor was

Frank Strobel Frank Strobel (born in 1966 in Munich) is a German conductor known for premieres and performances of works by composers Sergei Prokofiev, Franz Schreker and Siegfried Wagner. He is authorized arranger and editor of works by the composer Alfred ...

References

German symphony orchestras Musical groups established in 1993 Radio and television orchestras 1993 establishments in Germany {{orchestra-stub

See also

References