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Composing by Chance – A Musical Experiment at RIAS

In the late 1950s, RIAS (Radio in the American Sector), based in Berlin, launched an extraordinary musical experiment: well-known public figures were invited to take on the unusual challenge of composing a melody using nothing but dice.

The idea came from two young composers – one of them Peter Thomas, who would later become a cult film composer, and the other Klaus Wüsthoff. Each roll of the dice corresponded to a musical note, leaving the creative process entirely up to chance. In the end, a jury selected the most successful composition.

A playful journey into the world of music – where luck, coincidence, and true creativity collide.