The electronic / experimental scene in Berlin, in tandem with the one from Dusseldorf, has always fascinated me. Around the late 60's there, sequencers, synthesizers, feedback loops and the (sometimes drugged out) Europeans controlling them got really popular. Not radio-play popular, but to the point where artists around the world were listening to this bizarre development of music. It ended up having a big influence worldwide. The main two genres it spawned were Krautrock and New Age. While 'New Age' has some negative connotations these days, Krautrock still has a cult following, as evidenced by the blogs, youtube views, and the bands that still label themselves 'krautrock'. Tangerine Dream, CAN, Kraftwerk, Neu! are a few artists that have remained popular since those days.

I feel this contributed to their popularity, too: Brian Eno was influenced by Kraftwerk (he called their sound "nostalgic for the future"). David Bowie and Iggy Pop made visits to Kraftwerk in Germany. It's known that that had a clear influence on Eno/Bowie's popular 'Berlin Trio' of albums --'Lodger', 'Low' and 'Heroes'-- but IMO it had a clear influence on Iggy Pop's album 'The Idiot', for which David Bowie wrote most of the music, and produced the album. So that'a 3 very influential artists that were themselves influenced directly by the German electronic scene.

Obviously electronic music didn't come solely from Germany--people like Raymond Scott (1950's), BBC Radiophonic Workshop team (1950's), Bob Moog (1960's), among others all contributed to the development of electronic music as we know it today. But it was Germany that had the thriving local scene of experimental musicians working with the tools first-hand. It makes sense that trance music would eventually come from Germany, knowing that.

i will conclude this rambling with a reflection: EDM-flavored music on the Disney channel has its stylistic origins rooted in music that was made for people to rave, take drugs and have sex to. Best keep that from the soccer moms.