Germany

One of Germany's most legendary musicians, Achim Reichel's career started in 1960 with The Rattles, one of the countries first beat-era bands. The 70s saw him delve into the progressive music scene, first as A.R. & Machines, and then later as a record producer. Reichel's long and successful career as a solo artist started in 1976 with an album of seafaring songs, appropriately enough for the Hamburg native.

Founded: 1944

Location: Hamburg, Germany

Website: Achim Reichel

Guitarist, sound architecht and composer, Michael Rother is one of Germany's original artists of the progressive era. In the mid 1960s, he was a member of Spirits of Sound with Wolfgangs' Flür and Reichemann, then a member of Kraftwerk, Neu!, and Harmonia until forging a very successful solo career (with Jaki Liebizeit and Conny Plank) towards the late 1970s through the early 1980s.

Founded: 1950

Location: Hamburg, Germany

Website: MichaelRother

Along with Manuel Gottsching and Achim Reichel, Günter Schickert is a pioneer of "echo" guitar. Though a prolific musician, he has released just a few albums, thus lending to his relative obscurity.

Founded: 1949

Location: Berlin, West Germany

Website: Günter Schickert musician

Along with Hans-Joachim Roedelius, Conrad Schnitzler was a founder of the Zodiak Free Arts Club, the birthplace of the so-called "Berlin School" of electronic music, and perhaps krautrock in general. In 1969, with Edgar Froese and Klaus Schulze, he appeared on the debut Tangerine Dream album, Electronic Meditation. Next, with Roedelius and Dieter Moebius he performed as Kluster. However as typical throughout his career, Schnitzler's music at this time was primarily performance art in nature.

Founded: 1937

Location: Düsseldorf, Germany

Website: Conrad Schnitzler