Willem de Ridders' Radiola Improvisation Salon

A wondrous music performance about the rise of the Dutch cassette culture.

Next to vinyl, the cassette is also making a modest comeback. In many record stores, you can now find tape corners again, and obscure releases from the international cassette culture of the '80s are being reissued on record by specialized labels.

In the Netherlands, the music magazine Vinyl and Willem de Ridder were the driving forces behind the cassette culture. De Ridder - Fluxus artist, master storyteller, co-founder of Paradiso, and of the legendary Hitweek - always worked based on one principle: everyone can participate. No hierarchy, no gatekeepers. Just open doors and see what happens.

Between 1978 and 1984, he embodied that principle in his insane VPRO program De Radiola Improvisatie Salon. Unheard cassette tapes from listeners were broadcast live on the air for five minutes, without any selection. A TikTok avant la lettre, and a breeding ground for the Dutch cassette culture: a DIY movement of self-tapers and musical free spirits who are now considered precursors of contemporary producers.

In this homage performance, Marco van Dalfsen (archivist Diggin' Demos) and Frits Jonker (author of the book Muzikale Verleiding) will take you into the music of self-tapers, the wondrous world of Willem de Ridder, and the recently released Radiola compilation LP on Dead Mind Records.

This performance is part of the project The Rise of the Dutch Cassette Culture (Allard Pierson, Concertzender, Diggin’ Demos, Muziekweb.nl, and Podiumkunst.net). For more information: https://www.cassettecultuur.nl and muziekcassette@gmail.com

Willem de Ridder’s Radiola Improvisatie Salon

Day: Sunday, September 28
Time: 13:30 - 14:30
Location: PHIL (Van Beijnumzaal)
Tickets: this session is accessible with a weekend or day ticket, available here.