Georg Danzer
Encyclopedia
Georg Franz Danzer was an Austria
n singer-songwriter
. Although he is credited as one of the pioneers of Austropop
(most famous are his comic songs "Jö schau" (about a streaker
at the Café Hawelka
) and "Hupf' in Gatsch", both in Viennese German
), he always refused to be part of this genre.
Danzer was successful as a solo artist, but also in the group Austria3
, along with Wolfgang Ambros
and Rainhard Fendrich
. Besides his music, he translated two books from Spanish into German, and was strongly involved in highlighting social inequalities, opposing racism and any form of societal discrimination, and the lifestyle of the bourgeoisie
for all his life. Danzer was romantic, funny, socially engaged - and often a misfit. Having been a strong smoker for decades, he abstained from smoking after being diagnosed with lung cancer
, but nevertheless died from the disease. His legacy includes some 400 songs.
Georg Danzer was the son of a communist Viennese magistrate and a lazy student. After his Matura
(high school leaving certificate) he hitchhiked through Germany, the Netherlands and Italy. In autumn 1966 he applied for admission to Vienna's Akademie für Darstellende Künste (Drama Academy), but was not accepted; so instead he started studying Philosophy
and Psychology
in Vienna. In a 1968 ORF
-Interview he stated his intention to study Journalism
, to which moderator Gerhard Bronner
replied: "Shift to music soon, young man“.
, Hamburg, and Sweden. The next year he released his first single, Vera, and appeared on Austrian broadcast, but did not get a contract. Hitradio Ö3
editor Eva-Maria Kaiser took notice of him in 1970, and suggested that he could make a living by writing lyrics for "almost everybody in Vienna". During the next three years he wrote texts for Marianne Mendt
, Margot Werner, Erika Pluhar
, André Heller
, Wolfgang Ambros
and Wilfried. With Heller, Mendt and other young musicians, „Schurli“ often met in Gerhard Bronner's Cabaret Fledermaus. They invented Austrian pop music for the following decades.
During this time, singer-songwriters began to sing in Viennese German or even slang, exemplified by hits such as Wia a Glock'n (Marianne Mendt 1970; lyrics: Gerhard Bronner) and Da Hofa (Wolfgang Ambros 1971; lyrics by Joesi Prokopetz. For a while, Danzer was a member of the band The Madcaps
and wrote a couple of their songs, among them Schneemensch, Sommer is, John Wayne. In 1972, the single Tschik (a slang word for cigarette) attracted public attention and was perceived as "scandalous": a homeless man talks and sings about his life! Today the first edition of the single is in great demand as a collector's item; it was housed in a simple paper bag, and no author or singer was credited. Later, Peter Barwitz from Ö3 had a voice analysis made, which identified „Schurl(i)“ Danzer.
Next, in 1973, the album Honigmond appeared, which Danzer partially financed himself, and which flopped. In 1974, the concept album Der Tätowierer und die Mondprinzessin was released together with a book illustrated by the singer. Finally in 1975 Jö schau, a comic song about a streaker
at the Café Hawelka
, became a No 1 in the Austrian charts and stayed there for 20 weeks. In the same year the album Ollas leiwand (Slang for "Everything's all right") was released. On October 14 he married Dagmara, with whom he had been in a relationship since 1968.
The year 1976 brought good news for Danzer: his first daughter, Daniela, was born, and Danzer got a contract with a major label Polydor. Furthermore, English Music Week
"Star of the Year“, and five of his songs formed the soundtrack for the first Kottan ermittelt
TV series. The series, a parody criminal series set in 1970 Vienna, achieved cult status.
Danzer however moved towards Germany. In Berlin, the album Unter die Haut was produced in 1977. Michael Gechter (electric guitar), Earl Bostic (bass), Frank Lüdeke (saxophone), Eberhard "Bär“ Wieland (keyboard) and Olav Gustafson (percussion) formed Danzer's backing band, with which he recorded several successful albums over the following years. Although Danzer's work garnered many good reviews, he was blacklisted by several radio stations for his song War das etwa Haschisch? ("Was this possibly dope?"). At the end of 1977, the album Ein wenig Hoffnung was published in Germany, and at almost the same time, Narrenhaus (House of fools) was released in Austria.
, Konstantin Wecker
, Chris de Burgh
and Georges Moustaki
. Die gnädige Frau und das rote Reptil, a book with lyrics and prose, appeared in 1982. In 1983, Danzer was among the first German-language musicians who created a CD
-album (…und so weiter).
In the summer of 1984, Danzer dissolved his legendary band and went to Munich to produce Weiße Pferde. During the production of its video clip (by Rudi Dolezal
), he had a serious bike accident in Andalusia, and had to be flown back to Vienna because of heavy injuries. In 1985, his wife Dagmara filed for divorce, his former manager disappeared, he got in trouble with the financial revenue services, and his contract with Polydor came to an end.
In 1986, he was signed by Teldec (belongs to the Time-Warner group), and went to Spain to study Spanish, among other reasons. In 1988, he moved to Hamburg
, travelled to Egypt and Kenia and became infected by Malaria
. The next year saw Danzer and his new life partner, Bettina, move to a Farm in Werl
-Holtum (Westfalen), where he spent most of his time until 1994, and where he translated two works of Spanish author Manuel Vicent.
(guitar), Marianne Mendt (vocals) and Wilfried (vocals). The following tour of Austria was successful. In 1992, he married Bettina, and his son Jonas was born.
His CD Nahaufnahme (featuring Hans Theessink
, Dorretta Carter and others) was followed by a three-month tour of Austria, Germany and Switzerland in 1993. In 1994, another son, Jakob, was born, and the family moved to Austria. In 1995, the album Große Dinge (featuring Ulli Bäer, Gary Lux
, Thomas Morá and Peter Barborik) was released, as well as an album of Viennese songs, Liada ohne Grund (with Adi Hirschal and Lukas Goldschmidt).
December 10, 1997 was the birth of Austria3
. Rainhard Fendrich had gathered two friends for a single charity event for homeless people and thereby created one of the most successful Austrian groups. In the same year, Danzer was the first European musician to publish a CD-Extra with multimedia
content ($ex im Internet). Whilst touring with Austria3, he still produced solo albums.
In 2000, Danzer became president of the human rights organization "SOS Mitmensch". In 2002, the double CD Sonne & Mond was released, a retrospective of his 30 years on stage. In 2004, the album Persönlich was published with Wolfgang Puschnig (saxofone), Achim Tang (bass) and Christian Eigner
(percussion), also featuring Zabine and Katja Riemann
.
, the other one in Circus Krone
(Munich
). In December 2006, he was one of the supporters of activities alerting to the dangers of smoking (Österreichische Lungenunion). The previously cancelled Vienna concert took place on April 16, 2007, and his friends, Ambros and Fendrich, joined Danzer for a few songs to rekindle the spirit of former days. The concert was a perfect success, but also Georg Danzer's last appearance in public.
Danzer died at home on June 21, 2007, and was cremated the next day. He wanted to keep his burial place secret; almost none of his friends were invited to the funeral, except his long-time manager Franz Christian "Blacky" Schwarz, whose duty it was to inform the press a few hours after the burial had taken place. Danzer had stated before his death that, if it were offered to him by Viennese authorities, he would refuse an honorary grave ("Ehrengrab
") usually bestowed to artists of high calibre .
AT: 12 – 06.07.2007 –
Raritäten II
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
. Although he is credited as one of the pioneers of Austropop
Austropop
Austropop is a musical movement, which started in Austria in the middle of the 1970s. However, Austropop is not much of a specific style, it is more a trademark of origin, because musicians of various styles, such as rock, Neue Deutsche Welle, New Folk and more recently perhaps Pop, are counted as...
(most famous are his comic songs "Jö schau" (about a streaker
Streaking
Streaking is the act of running nude through a public place.-History:On 5 July 1799, a Friday evening at 7 o'clock, a naked man was arrested at the Mansion House, London, and sent to the Poultry Compter...
at the Café Hawelka
Café Hawelka
Café Hawelka is a coffeehouse in the Innere Stadt district of Vienna located at Dorotheergasse 6.The Café Hawelka was opened by Leopold Hawelka in 1939. Hawelka had previously operated the Kaffee Alt Wien on Bäckerstraße since 1936 and together with his wife Josefine took over the Café Ludwig in...
) and "Hupf' in Gatsch", both in Viennese German
Viennese German
Viennese German is the city dialect spoken in Vienna, the capital of Austria and is counted among the Bavarian dialects. Even in Lower Austria, the state surrounding the city, many of its expressions are not used, while farther to the west they are often not even understood.- Linguistic...
), he always refused to be part of this genre.
Danzer was successful as a solo artist, but also in the group Austria3
Austria3
Austria3 was a conglomerate of three Austrian quite individualist singer-songwriters Wolfgang Ambros, Georg Danzer and Rainhard Fendrich.The group was initiated by Fendrich in order to give one single charity concert in favour of homeless in 1997...
, along with Wolfgang Ambros
Wolfgang Ambros
Wolfgang Ambros is an Austrian singer-songwriter, most famously known for setting the then-new trend in the 1970s known now as Austropop. He is most famous for his song "Da Hofa" and "Schi foan"....
and Rainhard Fendrich
Rainhard Fendrich
Rainhard Jürgen Fendrich is an Austrian singer, composer, entertainer, and actor. He is one of the most successful Austropop musicians. His lyrics are written in Viennese German, and he is very popular in Austria, but less in other German-speaking countries, and by far less known in non-German...
. Besides his music, he translated two books from Spanish into German, and was strongly involved in highlighting social inequalities, opposing racism and any form of societal discrimination, and the lifestyle of the bourgeoisie
Bourgeoisie
In sociology and political science, bourgeoisie describes a range of groups across history. In the Western world, between the late 18th century and the present day, the bourgeoisie is a social class "characterized by their ownership of capital and their related culture." A member of the...
for all his life. Danzer was romantic, funny, socially engaged - and often a misfit. Having been a strong smoker for decades, he abstained from smoking after being diagnosed with lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
, but nevertheless died from the disease. His legacy includes some 400 songs.
Georg Danzer was the son of a communist Viennese magistrate and a lazy student. After his Matura
Matura
Matura or a similar term is the common name for the high-school leaving exam or "maturity exam" in various countries, including Albania, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy, Kosovo, Liechtenstein, Macedonia, Montenegro, Poland, Serbia,...
(high school leaving certificate) he hitchhiked through Germany, the Netherlands and Italy. In autumn 1966 he applied for admission to Vienna's Akademie für Darstellende Künste (Drama Academy), but was not accepted; so instead he started studying Philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
and Psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
in Vienna. In a 1968 ORF
ORF
ORF may refer to:* ORF , the Austrian public service broadcaster.* Open reading frame, a portion of the genome.* The IATA airport code for Norfolk International Airport in Norfolk, Virginia.* ORF format , Olympus raw image file format....
-Interview he stated his intention to study Journalism
Journalism
Journalism is the practice of investigation and reporting of events, issues and trends to a broad audience in a timely fashion. Though there are many variations of journalism, the ideal is to inform the intended audience. Along with covering organizations and institutions such as government and...
, to which moderator Gerhard Bronner
Gerhard Bronner
Gerhard Bronner was an Austrian composer, writer, musician and a cabaret artist, known for his contribution to Austrian culture in the post-World War II period....
replied: "Shift to music soon, young man“.
Beginnings; „Jö schau“
In 1967 Danzer had started to write and play music after he returned from a longer hitchhiking tour of CreteCrete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
, Hamburg, and Sweden. The next year he released his first single, Vera, and appeared on Austrian broadcast, but did not get a contract. Hitradio Ö3
Hitradio Ö3
Hitradio Ö3 is one of the national radio stations of Austria's state-run broadcaster ORF.The station focuses on contemporary music. Until 1995 its schedules included many specialist music shows, but following a reorganization of ORF's channels shortly before the introduction in Austria of private...
editor Eva-Maria Kaiser took notice of him in 1970, and suggested that he could make a living by writing lyrics for "almost everybody in Vienna". During the next three years he wrote texts for Marianne Mendt
Marianne Mendt
Marianne Mendt is an Austrian jazz singer and actress, best known for her participation in the 1971 Eurovision Song Contest.- Early career :...
, Margot Werner, Erika Pluhar
Erika Pluhar
Erika Pluhar is an actress, singer and author from Austria and was born on 28 February 1939 in Vienna.Erika Pluhar is the daughter of Anna and Dr Josef Pluhar. One of her sisters, Ingeborg G...
, André Heller
André Heller
Franz André Heller is an Austrian artist, author, singer and actor.- Biography :Heller was born in Vienna into a wealthy Jewish family of sweets manufacturers . His almost daily visits to the Café Hawelka were in his opinion a key element in the development of his literary orientation...
, Wolfgang Ambros
Wolfgang Ambros
Wolfgang Ambros is an Austrian singer-songwriter, most famously known for setting the then-new trend in the 1970s known now as Austropop. He is most famous for his song "Da Hofa" and "Schi foan"....
and Wilfried. With Heller, Mendt and other young musicians, „Schurli“ often met in Gerhard Bronner's Cabaret Fledermaus. They invented Austrian pop music for the following decades.
During this time, singer-songwriters began to sing in Viennese German or even slang, exemplified by hits such as Wia a Glock'n (Marianne Mendt 1970; lyrics: Gerhard Bronner) and Da Hofa (Wolfgang Ambros 1971; lyrics by Joesi Prokopetz. For a while, Danzer was a member of the band The Madcaps
The Madcaps
The Madcaps was an Austrian band that was founded in 1965 in Strasshof by Hans Kloiber.The most successful songs were I man i dram, Schneemensch, and Und wem's net gfoid, der soll sich haun über d'Häusa. Georg Danzer, one of the members who wrote some of their songs, later started a solo career.-...
and wrote a couple of their songs, among them Schneemensch, Sommer is, John Wayne. In 1972, the single Tschik (a slang word for cigarette) attracted public attention and was perceived as "scandalous": a homeless man talks and sings about his life! Today the first edition of the single is in great demand as a collector's item; it was housed in a simple paper bag, and no author or singer was credited. Later, Peter Barwitz from Ö3 had a voice analysis made, which identified „Schurl(i)“ Danzer.
Next, in 1973, the album Honigmond appeared, which Danzer partially financed himself, and which flopped. In 1974, the concept album Der Tätowierer und die Mondprinzessin was released together with a book illustrated by the singer. Finally in 1975 Jö schau, a comic song about a streaker
Streaking
Streaking is the act of running nude through a public place.-History:On 5 July 1799, a Friday evening at 7 o'clock, a naked man was arrested at the Mansion House, London, and sent to the Poultry Compter...
at the Café Hawelka
Café Hawelka
Café Hawelka is a coffeehouse in the Innere Stadt district of Vienna located at Dorotheergasse 6.The Café Hawelka was opened by Leopold Hawelka in 1939. Hawelka had previously operated the Kaffee Alt Wien on Bäckerstraße since 1936 and together with his wife Josefine took over the Café Ludwig in...
, became a No 1 in the Austrian charts and stayed there for 20 weeks. In the same year the album Ollas leiwand (Slang for "Everything's all right") was released. On October 14 he married Dagmara, with whom he had been in a relationship since 1968.
The year 1976 brought good news for Danzer: his first daughter, Daniela, was born, and Danzer got a contract with a major label Polydor. Furthermore, English Music Week
Music Week
Music Week is a trade paper for the UK record industry.Founded in 1959 as Record Retailer, it was relaunched on 18 March 1972 as Music Week . On 17 January 1981 the title was again changed, owing to the increasing importance of sell-through videos, to Music & Video Week...
"Star of the Year“, and five of his songs formed the soundtrack for the first Kottan ermittelt
Kottan ermittelt
Kottan ermittelt is an Austrian television series....
TV series. The series, a parody criminal series set in 1970 Vienna, achieved cult status.
Danzer however moved towards Germany. In Berlin, the album Unter die Haut was produced in 1977. Michael Gechter (electric guitar), Earl Bostic (bass), Frank Lüdeke (saxophone), Eberhard "Bär“ Wieland (keyboard) and Olav Gustafson (percussion) formed Danzer's backing band, with which he recorded several successful albums over the following years. Although Danzer's work garnered many good reviews, he was blacklisted by several radio stations for his song War das etwa Haschisch? ("Was this possibly dope?"). At the end of 1977, the album Ein wenig Hoffnung was published in Germany, and at almost the same time, Narrenhaus (House of fools) was released in Austria.
Popularity and crisis
"Georg Danzer Tournee 79“ had 32 shows, and all of them had sold out. A double live album from this tour appeared in the following year. More successful albums soon followed (Traurig aber wahr 1980, Ruhe vor dem Sturm 1981). Even Austrians began to realize that Danzer was more than Jö schau. The ORF produced a 45-minutes feature, Danzer Direkt. In 1981, Danzer played 47 concerts solo (Live-Album Direkt), followed by an Open-Air-Tournee with Ludwig HirschLudwig Hirsch
Ludwig Hirsch was an Austrian singer/songwriter and actor.-Life and Work:Hirsch was born in Sankt Magdalena am Lemberg, Styria, grew up in the Leopoldstadt district of Vienna and first studied graphic arts at the University of Applied Arts Vienna, but switched to the Krauss drama school...
, Konstantin Wecker
Konstantin Wecker
Konstantin Alexander Wecker is one of the best-known German singer-songwriters ; he also works as a composer, author, and actor.- Life and work :...
, Chris de Burgh
Chris de Burgh
Chris de Burgh is a British/Irish singer-songwriter. He is most famous for his 1986 love song "The Lady in Red".-Early life:...
and Georges Moustaki
Georges Moustaki
Giuseppe Mustacchi, known as Georges Moustaki , is a French singer and songwriter of Italo-Greek Jewish origin, best known for his poetic rhythm, eloquent simplicity and his hundreds of romantic songs...
. Die gnädige Frau und das rote Reptil, a book with lyrics and prose, appeared in 1982. In 1983, Danzer was among the first German-language musicians who created a CD
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
-album (…und so weiter).
In the summer of 1984, Danzer dissolved his legendary band and went to Munich to produce Weiße Pferde. During the production of its video clip (by Rudi Dolezal
DoRo Productions
DoRo Produktion Ges.mbH aka DoRo Productions is a film company based in Vienna, Austria. DoRo was named after the surnames of founders Rudi Dolezal and Hannes Rossacher.- History :...
), he had a serious bike accident in Andalusia, and had to be flown back to Vienna because of heavy injuries. In 1985, his wife Dagmara filed for divorce, his former manager disappeared, he got in trouble with the financial revenue services, and his contract with Polydor came to an end.
In 1986, he was signed by Teldec (belongs to the Time-Warner group), and went to Spain to study Spanish, among other reasons. In 1988, he moved to Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, travelled to Egypt and Kenia and became infected by Malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
. The next year saw Danzer and his new life partner, Bettina, move to a Farm in Werl
Werl
Werl is a town located in the district of Soest in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.-Geography:Werl is easily accessible because it is located between the Sauerland, Münsterland, and the Ruhr Area...
-Holtum (Westfalen), where he spent most of his time until 1994, and where he translated two works of Spanish author Manuel Vicent.
Back to Vienna
From 1990, Danzer spent again some time in Vienna and produced the album Wieder in Wien ("Back to Vienna"), with Peter CorneliusPeter Cornelius (musician)
Peter Cornelius is an Austrian pop-singer, guitarist and a former member of Enigma.- Albums :* 1974 Hampelmann* 1974 Fleckerlteppich* 1976 Eine Rose aus Papier* 1980 Der Kaffee ist fertig...
(guitar), Marianne Mendt (vocals) and Wilfried (vocals). The following tour of Austria was successful. In 1992, he married Bettina, and his son Jonas was born.
His CD Nahaufnahme (featuring Hans Theessink
Hans Theessink
Hans Theessink is a Dutch guitarist, singer and songwriter, living in Vienna, Austria. He performs blues and roots music, particularly in a Delta blues style. Theessink has released 20 albums, a songbook, a blues-guitar instruction video and a DVD.-External links:* official website* myspace...
, Dorretta Carter and others) was followed by a three-month tour of Austria, Germany and Switzerland in 1993. In 1994, another son, Jakob, was born, and the family moved to Austria. In 1995, the album Große Dinge (featuring Ulli Bäer, Gary Lux
Gary Lux
Gerhard "Gary" Lux is an Austrian singer, most famous for having represented his country in the Eurovision Song Contest on six occasions. He was born in Ontario Canada but returned to live in Austria with his parents as a young boy. He is married to Marianne and has 2 sons, Benny and Dennis...
, Thomas Morá and Peter Barborik) was released, as well as an album of Viennese songs, Liada ohne Grund (with Adi Hirschal and Lukas Goldschmidt).
December 10, 1997 was the birth of Austria3
Austria3
Austria3 was a conglomerate of three Austrian quite individualist singer-songwriters Wolfgang Ambros, Georg Danzer and Rainhard Fendrich.The group was initiated by Fendrich in order to give one single charity concert in favour of homeless in 1997...
. Rainhard Fendrich had gathered two friends for a single charity event for homeless people and thereby created one of the most successful Austrian groups. In the same year, Danzer was the first European musician to publish a CD-Extra with multimedia
Multimedia
Multimedia is media and content that uses a combination of different content forms. The term can be used as a noun or as an adjective describing a medium as having multiple content forms. The term is used in contrast to media which use only rudimentary computer display such as text-only, or...
content ($ex im Internet). Whilst touring with Austria3, he still produced solo albums.
In 2000, Danzer became president of the human rights organization "SOS Mitmensch". In 2002, the double CD Sonne & Mond was released, a retrospective of his 30 years on stage. In 2004, the album Persönlich was published with Wolfgang Puschnig (saxofone), Achim Tang (bass) and Christian Eigner
Christian Eigner
Christian Eigner is an Austrian drummer, composer, live and session musician.- Depeche Mode & Christian Eigner :...
(percussion), also featuring Zabine and Katja Riemann
Katja Riemann
Katja Hannchen Leni Riemann is a German actress.- Life and work :Born as the daughter of two teachers, Katja Riemann spent her childhood in Weyhe, near Bremen. After high school she went to Hamburg to study music and theater...
.
Disease
In September 2006, Danzer informed the public that he was suffering from lung cancer. He had to cancel two concerts scheduled for the following October, one in Wiener StadthalleWiener Stadthalle
Wiener Stadthalle is an indoor arena, located in the 15th district of Vienna, Austria. It was designed by Austrian architect Roland Rainer and built from 1953–1958...
, the other one in Circus Krone
Circus Krone
Circus Krone, based in Munich, is the largest circus in Europe and the only one in Western Europe to also occupy a building.-History:It was originally founded in 1905 by Carl Krone as an animal exhibition. Later the circus was run by his daughter Frieda Sembach-Krone and her husband Carl...
(Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
). In December 2006, he was one of the supporters of activities alerting to the dangers of smoking (Österreichische Lungenunion). The previously cancelled Vienna concert took place on April 16, 2007, and his friends, Ambros and Fendrich, joined Danzer for a few songs to rekindle the spirit of former days. The concert was a perfect success, but also Georg Danzer's last appearance in public.
Danzer died at home on June 21, 2007, and was cremated the next day. He wanted to keep his burial place secret; almost none of his friends were invited to the funeral, except his long-time manager Franz Christian "Blacky" Schwarz, whose duty it was to inform the press a few hours after the burial had taken place. Danzer had stated before his death that, if it were offered to him by Viennese authorities, he would refuse an honorary grave ("Ehrengrab
Ehrengrab
An Ehrengrab is a distinction granted by certain German, Swiss and Austrian cities to one of their citizens for extraordinary services or achievements in their lifetime. If there are no descendants or institutions to care for the gravesite, the communities or cities will take responsibility for...
") usually bestowed to artists of high calibre .
Discography
Albums|
|
|
AT: 12 – 06.07.2007 –
Raritäten II
- AT: 16 – 01.06.2007 – 3 Wo.
- Wiederveröffentlichung
AT: 21 – 13.07.2007 –
Awards
In 1993, he was the second singer/songwriter awarded with Swiss „Goldenes Ohr“. In 1995, Belgian boadcast awarded him with "Silver Antenna" for having most song's lyrics in schoolbooks, worldwide. In 1996, he got Vienna's "Goldener Rathausmann", presented by Grete Laska and Harry Kopietz. In 1999, Danzer, Ambros and Fendrich (Austria3Austria3
Austria3 was a conglomerate of three Austrian quite individualist singer-songwriters Wolfgang Ambros, Georg Danzer and Rainhard Fendrich.The group was initiated by Fendrich in order to give one single charity concert in favour of homeless in 1997...
) got „BASF Master Award“. In 2005, Amadeus Austrian Music Award, "Best Album of 2004" in category "Pop Album National", for Persönlich. In 2007, a second "Amadeus" for his life's career.
Literature
All quoted books are in German.By Danzer:
- Die gnädige Frau und das rote Reptil. Erzählungen, Lieder, Gedanken, Betrachtungen, Heyne 1982, ISBN 3453015851
- Auf und davon, Edition Tau 1993, ISBN 3900977437
Translations by Danzer (from Spanish)
- Manuel Vicent: Mein Name ist Kain, Residenz Verlag, Salzburg 1991, ISBN 3701706956
- Manuel Vicent: Der Flug der erloschenen Schönheit, Residenz Verlag, Salzburg 1992, ISBN 3701707391
On Danzer
- Kathrin Brigl (Interviews) und Siegfried Schmidt-Joos (Edition): Selbstredend… Rowohlt, Reinbek 1985, 252 S., Ill., Interviewporträts mit Gerorg Danzer, Klaus HoffmannKlaus HoffmannKlaus Hoffmann is a German singer, songwriter and actor.- Career :Klaus Hoffmann started his career as a singer-songwriter during the late 1960s in the alternative Berlin club culture...
, Peter HortonPeter HortonPeter Horton is an American actor and director. He played the role of Prof. Gary Shepherd on the popular television series Thirtysomething until 1991.-Early life:...
, Heinz Rudolf KunzeHeinz Rudolf KunzeHeinz Rudolf Erich Arthur Kunze is a German writer and rock singer. His greatest hits were Dein ist mein ganzes Herz and Mit Leib und Seele in 1985 and 1986.- Biography :Kunze was born on 30 November 1956 in the refugee camp...
, Reinhard MeyReinhard MeyReinhard Friedrich Michael Mey is a German singer-songwriter, known to fans as "Liedermacher". In France he is known as Frédérik Mey....
, Erika PluharErika PluharErika Pluhar is an actress, singer and author from Austria and was born on 28 February 1939 in Vienna.Erika Pluhar is the daughter of Anna and Dr Josef Pluhar. One of her sisters, Ingeborg G...
, Hans Scheibner, Stephan Sulke - Beate Dapper (Hrsg.): Liedermacher. Ulla Meinecke, Klaus Hoffmann, Georg Danzer, Hannes WaderHannes WaderHannes Wader is a German singer-songwriter . He was an important figure in German leftist circles from the 1970s on, with his songs covering such themes as socialist and communist resistance to oppression in Europe and other places like Latin America...
, Reinhard Mey. Bund-Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1998, 75 S., Ill., ISBN 978-3-7957-5685-7 - Georg Danzer: Jetzt oder nie. Im Gespräch mit Christian Seiler. Amalthea Signum, Wien 2006, 152 S., Gebunden, ISBN 978-3-85002-584-3