Electronic Orchestra at the Sports Ball
25. February 2026
Since last year, the Popakademie Baden-Württemberg has been home to “PEO,” the Popakademie Electronic Orchestra—a large electronic ensemble that interprets orchestral works using only analog synthesizers. The project was initiated by Derek von Krogh (artistic director and managing director of the Popular Music Department) and is supported by Mathias “Maze” Leber. All interested students at the Popakademie can participate in the project.
On Saturday, February 21, 2026, PEO performed live for the first time at the Ball des Sports in Frankfurt's Festhalle – with a set that was musically programmed entirely around “sporting” triumph and goose bumps. The program included iconic titles such as “Chariots of Fire,” “We Are the Champions,” and “Brazil” – reinterpreted in the characteristic PEO sound: orchestral in concept, electronically played, live with full force.With the Ball des Sports, the German Sports Aid Foundation organizes one of the most important social events in Germany. It is considered Europe's largest and most important charity event in sports. Since 1970, celebrities, politicians, business leaders, and society have been involved in the Ball des Sports to support Germany's best young and top athletes.
Under the leadership of Hassler-made-AI, an elaborate light and video installation was created for the visual concept, which took the performance far beyond the classic concert format. Transparent LED walls were used to project the orchestra into various digital windows – an interplay of real presence and digital stage that spatially expanded the music and created an extraordinary audiovisual experience.
The Popakademie Baden-Württemberg would like to express its sincere thanks to Hassler-made-AI and Ball des Sports for their outstanding cooperation and for an evening that demonstrated how exciting the combination of live performance, creative use of technology, and artistic design can be today. A big thank you also goes to the ensemble's three sponsors, BASF, the Hans Thomann Foundation, and Korg & More, without whose support this technically highly complex project would not have been possible.
If you are curious and would like to get a little glimpse behind the scenes, you can now find PEO on Instagram.