Peter Herbolzheimer
Encyclopedia
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
trombonist
Trombone
The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
and bandleader
Bandleader
A bandleader is the leader of a band of musicians. The term is most commonly, though not exclusively, used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhythm and blues or rock and roll music....
.
Biography
Herbolzheimer was born in BucharestBucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
and migrated from communist Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
to West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
in 1951. In 1953 he moved to the United States of America, where he worked as a guitarist. He returned to Germany in 1957, took up the trombone and for one year studied at the Nuremberg
Nuremberg
Nuremberg[p] is a city in the German state of Bavaria, in the administrative region of Middle Franconia. Situated on the Pegnitz river and the Rhine–Main–Danube Canal, it is located about north of Munich and is Franconia's largest city. The population is 505,664...
Conservatory. In the 1960s he played with the Nuremberg radio dance orchestra and with Bert Kämpfert's orchestra. In 1968 he became member of the pit orchestra of 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...
theater (Deutsches Schauspielhaus) directed by Hans Koller. In 1969 Herbolzheimer formed his Rhythm Combination and Brass (RC&B) for which he wrote most of the arrangements. This big band was unique in that it had an international lineup of eight brass, but originally only one saxophone, with Herb Geller
Herb Geller
Herb Geller , is an American jazz saxophonist, composer and arranger.His musical abilities could have been inherited from his mother, Francis. She worked at the Hollywood neighbourhood cinemas playing piano, accompanying silent movies...
in that chair. The list of brass players included Allan Botschinsky
Allan Botschinsky
Allan Botschinsky is a Danish jazz trumpeter.Botschinsky's father played bassoon professionally. He began on trumpet at age 11 and at 14 began studying at the Royal Danish Conservatorium...
(Denmark), Art Farmer
Art Farmer
Arthur Stewart "Art" Farmer was an American jazz trumpeter and flugelhorn player. He also played flumpet, a trumpet/flugelhorn combination designed for him by David Monette. His identical twin brother, Addison Farmer Arthur Stewart "Art" Farmer (August 21, 1928, Council Bluffs, Iowa –...
(USA), Dusko Goykovich (Bosnia), Palle Mikkelborg
Palle Mikkelborg
Palle Mikkelborg , is a Danish jazz trumpeter, composer, arranger and record producer. He started playing professionally in 1960, and has since been a dominant figure on the Danish and international progressive jazz scene...
(Denmark), Ack van Rooyen (Netherlands) and Jiggs Whigham
Jiggs Whigham
Jiggs Whigham is an American jazz trombonist living in Europe.Born in Cleveland, Ohio, he began his professional career at age 17, joining the Glenn Miller/Ray Mckinley orchestra in 1961...
(USA). The rhythm section consisted of two keyboards, guitar, bass, drums and percussion and included renowned musicians such as Dieter Reith (Germany), Philip Catherine
Philip Catherine
Philip Catherine is a Belgian jazz guitarist.-Biography:He was born in London from an English mother and Belgian father....
(Belgium), Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen
Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen
- Discography :* My Name Is Albert Ayler 1963 * Kirk in Copenhagen 1963 * Ben Webster in Denmark 1965-1971 Live at Danish Radio studios, Jazzhus Montmartre and Odd Fellow Palæet - Universal Music Denmark*One Flight Up 1964 *Sunday Walk 1969 - Discography :* My Name Is Albert Ayler 1963 (with...
(Denmark), Bo Stief
Bo Stief
Bo Stief is a Danish jazz and rock bassist, composer, and arranger born in Copenhagen.He has worked or recorded with Don Cherry, Miles Davis, Stan Getz, Dizzy Gillespie, Dexter Gordon, Johnny Griffin, Jackie McLean, George Russell, Kenny Drew and Ben Webster, among many other prominent jazz...
(Denmark), Alex Riel
Alex Riel
Alex Riel, , is a Danish jazz and rock drummer. His first group Alex Riel/Palle Mikkelborg Quintet won Montreux Grand Prix Award at the Montreux Jazz Festival in 1968 and it was published in Billboards June 1968 edition.-Biography:Riel has recorded with, among others, Kenny Drew, Kenny Werner, Bob...
(Denmark), Grady Tate
Grady Tate
Grady Tate, , is a hard bop and soul-jazz drummer and singer.He has played with Lional Hampton, Jimmy Smith, Grant Green, Lena Horne, Astrud Gilberto, Ella Fitzgerald, Miles Davis, Blossom Dearie, Chris Connor, Sarah Vaughan, Ray Charles, Cal Tjader, Peggy Lee, Bill Evans, Duke Ellington, Count...
(USA), and Nippy Noya
Nippy Noya
Nippy Noya is a Europe-based Indonesian percussionist and songwriter, specialising in congas, Kalimba, bongos, Campana, Güiro, Cabasa, shek, Caxixi, triangle and the Berimbau....
(Indonesia). For special events the group was augmented as necessary, but the basic combination remained as such for several years. In the late 1970s the band toured successfully with a "jazz gala" program featuring guest stars such as Esther Phillips
Esther Phillips
Esther Phillips was an American singer. Phillips was known for her R&B vocals, but she was a versatile singer, also performing pop, country, jazz, blues and soul music.-Early life:...
, Stan Getz
Stan Getz
Stanley Getz was an American jazz saxophone player. Getz was known as "The Sound" because of his warm, lyrical tone, his prime influence being the wispy, mellow timbre of his idol, Lester Young. Coming to prominence in the late 1940s with Woody Herman's big band, Getz is described by critic Scott...
, Nat Adderley
Nat Adderley
Nathaniel Adderley was an American jazz cornet and trumpet player who played in the hard bop and soul jazz genres. He was the brother of saxophonist Julian "Cannonball" Adderley....
, Gerry Mulligan
Gerry Mulligan
Gerald Joseph "Gerry" Mulligan was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, composer and arranger. Though Mulligan is primarily known as one of the leading baritone saxophonists in jazz history – playing the instrument with a light and airy tone in the era of cool jazz – he was also...
, Toots Thielemans
Toots Thielemans
Jean-Baptiste Frédéric Isidor, Baron Thielemans , known as Toots Thielemans, is a Belgian jazz musician well known for his guitar and harmonica playing as well as his whistling. Thielemans is credited as one of the greatest harmonica players of the 20th century...
, Clark Terry
Clark Terry
Clark Terry is an American swing and bop trumpeter, a pioneer of the fluegelhorn in jazz, educator, NEA Jazz Masters inductee, and recipient of the 2010 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award...
, and Albert Mangelsdorff
Albert Mangelsdorff
Albert Mangelsdorff was one of the most accredited and innovative trombonists of modern jazz who became famous for his distinctive technique of playing multiphonics.-Biography:...
. In later years the RC&B played many concert tours, television shows and jazz festivals. It was later replaced by a regular sized big band, which featured many noted international artists such as Dianne Reeves
Dianne Reeves
Dianne Reeves is an American jazz singer. She currently lives in Denver, Colorado.-Early life:Reeves was born in Detroit, Michigan to a very musical family. Her father, who died when she was two years old, was also a singer. Her mother, Vada Swanson, played trumpet. A cousin, George Duke, is a...
and Chaka Khan
Chaka Khan
Chaka Khan , frequently known as the Queen of Funk, is a 10-time Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter who gained fame in the 1970s as the frontwoman and focal point of the funk band Rufus. While still a member of the group in 1978, Khan embarked on a successful solo career...
, that was still active until Peter's passing.
In 1972 Herbolzheimer wrote music for the Edelhagen Band
Kurt Edelhagen
Kurt Edelhagen, born 5 June 1920 in Herne, died 8 February 1982 in Köln, was a major European big band leader throughout the 1950s.After having studied clarinet and piano in Essen, he set up his multicultural big band, which over the years would include many big names in jazz in Europe, including...
's opening of the Olympic Games
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
in 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 1974 Herbolzheimer's Rhythm Combination & Brass entered an annual television competition held in the Belgian seaside resort Knokke
Knokke
Knokke is one of a group of communities that are all grouped in the administrative community Knokke-Heist, in the province of West Flanders in Flanders, Belgium. Knokke itself has 15,653 inhabitants .Knokke-Heist has 33,818 inhabitants ....
, winning the coveted Golden Swan Award. He also won the International Jazz Composers Competition 1974 in Monaco
Monaco
Monaco , officially the Principality of Monaco , is a sovereign city state on the French Riviera. It is bordered on three sides by its neighbour, France, and its centre is about from Italy. Its area is with a population of 35,986 as of 2011 and is the most densely populated country in the...
. Herbolzheimer's arrangements are a distinctive amalgam of swing, Latin and rhythmic rock music.
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Herbolzheimer, as the arranger and conductor, led his orchestra for virtually every major German television network while featuring and accompanied visiting American musicians such as Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
, Benny Goodman
Benny Goodman
Benjamin David “Benny” Goodman was an American jazz and swing musician, clarinetist and bandleader; widely known as the "King of Swing".In the mid-1930s, Benny Goodman led one of the most popular musical groups in America...
, Sammy Davis, Jr.
Sammy Davis, Jr.
Samuel George "Sammy" Davis Jr. was an American entertainer and was also known for his impersonations of actors and other celebrities....
, Dizzy Gillespie
Dizzy Gillespie
John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise".Together with Charlie Parker, he was a major figure in the development of bebop and modern jazz...
and Al Jarreau
Al Jarreau
Alwin "Al" Lopez Jarreau is a seven-time Grammy Award winning jazz singer.- Background :Jarreau was born in Milwaukee, the fifth of six children. His web site refers to Reservoir, Inc., the name of the street where he lived. His father was a Seventh-Day Adventist Church minister and singer, and...
.
Between 1987 and 2006 Herbolzheimer was the musical director of Germany's national youth jazz orchestra, the Bundes Jazz Orchester (BuJazzo). He conducted regular workshops and clinics for big band jazz.
In 2007, Peter was chosen as the music director, arranger and conductor of the European Jazz Band, which toured throughout Europe until 2009.
Herbolzheimer died aged 74 in his hometown of Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
, Germany on 27 March 2010.
Discography
- Soul Condor, 1970 (MPSMPS RecordsMPS Records was a German jazz record label founded in 1968. MPS stands for "Musik Produktion Schwarzwald" .-History:...
) - My Kind Of Sunshine, 1970 (MPS)
- Wide Open, 1973 (MPS)
- Waitaminute, 1973 (MPS)
- Scenes, 1974 (MPS)
- Live im Onkel PöOnkel PöOnkel Pös Carnegie Hall, better known as Onkel Pö, was a music venue in Hamburg in the 1970s and the early 1980s.-Pöseldorf:Onkel Pö was originally a jazz venue in Mittelweg in the quarter Pöseldorf in Hamburg, and was opened by Bernd Cordua and Peter Marxen, who had previously opened the...
, 1975 (Polydor) - The Catfish, 1975
- Hip Walk, 1976 (Polydor)
- Jazz Gala Concert 1976 – Koala Reco (Bellaphon)
- Touch Down, 1977
- Jazz Gala 77 – Telefunken/Decca
- I hear Voices, 1978 (Polydor)
- Quality, 1978 (Acanto/Bellaphon)
- Jazz Gala Concert 79 – Rare Bid/Bellaphon
- Toots Suite – Alanna
- Dreißig Jahre – Live in Concert – Mons (SunnyMoon)
- Colours of a Band – Mons (SunnyMoon)
- Masterpieces – MPS-Record (Universal)
- Music for Swinging Dancers, 1984 (Koal Reco)
- Latin Groove, 1987 – Koala Reco (Bellaphon)
- Fat Man Boogie, 1981 – Koala Reco (Bellaphon)
- Fatman 2, 1983 – Koala Reco (Bellaphon)
- Bandfire, 1981 – Koala Reco (Bellaphon)
- Smile – Koala Reco (Bellaphon) )
- Friends and Silhouettes – Koala Reco (Bellaphon)
- Big Band Bebop, 1984 – Koala/Bellaphon
- More Bebop, 1984 – Koala
- Harlem Story, 1984; Koala
- Colors of a Band, 1995 (with Dianne ReevesDianne ReevesDianne Reeves is an American jazz singer. She currently lives in Denver, Colorado.-Early life:Reeves was born in Detroit, Michigan to a very musical family. Her father, who died when she was two years old, was also a singer. Her mother, Vada Swanson, played trumpet. A cousin, George Duke, is a...
)