Herbert Gronemeyer

Herbert Arthur Wiglev Clamor Gr¦nemeyer (born April 12, 1956) is a German musician and actor, popular in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. He starred in Wolfgang Petersens movie Das Boot, but later concentrated on his musical career. His fifth album Bochum (1984) and his 20th album Human (2002) are the best-selling German-language records of all time.

Gr¦nemeyers interest in music was sparked at the age of eight, when he started to take piano classes. These later formed the basis for his work as a pianist and composer at the local theatre Schauspielhaus Bochum. In 1979, at the City of Cologne Theatre (Schauspielhaus K¦ln), using his musical talent to great effect, he gave an excellent performance as Lorenzo in the The Merchant of Venice. Although never having attended an acting school he soon appeared in several TV productions. During one of the shootings he met his later wife, the actress Anna Henkel. Additionally, Gr¦nemeyer published an album he had recorded with the jazz formation Ocean Orchestra in 1978, a year in which he also composed the music for the film Uns reicht das nicht by J¬rgen Flimm, together with Jens-Peter Ostendorf. His first solo album Gr¦nemeyer, which was published in 1979, was awarded the Golden Lemon for the ugliest album cover of the year. His second album Zwo was released in 1981. Neither managed to chart. In the same year he starred in Wolfgang Petersens successful movie Das Boot as Lieutenant Werner. For the role of composer Robert Schumann in the German-German coproduction Fr¬hlingssinfonie (co-starring Nastassja Kinski and Rolf Hoppe), for which he also composed the film score, Gr¦nemeyer spent six months in the GDR. During the early 1980s Gr¦nemeyer put his main focus on his music; the next two albums Total egal (1982) and Gemischte Gef¬hle (1983) flopped and most concerts of the planned tour had to be cancelled.

Gr¦nemeyer first met success as a musician in 1984 with the release of Bochum which became the best-sold album in Germany that year, particularly supported by the hit single M”nner. A year later Gr¦nemeyer appeared in the TV-movie V”ter und S¦hne, co-starring Julie Christie, Burt Lancaster and Bruno Ganz. In his next albums Spr¬nge (1986) and † (1988) he increasingly expressed his political opinion, criticising the government under German Chancellor Helmut Kohl. In 1986 Gr¦nemeyer performed at the Anti-WAAhnsinns Festival against nuclear power and he composed the film score for the TV film Sommer in Lesmona, for which he received the Adolf Grimme Award in gold. The release of his first English album Whats all this was followed by a tour through Canada, where it had success in the charts. After the Berlin Wall had fallen Gr¦nemeyer released the album Luxus in which he addressed the feelings in East and West Germany. Having two children together, Felix and Marie, he married his companion Anna Henkel in 1993. In the same year Chaos was released and became a Top 1 hit record in Germany. More than 600,000 people saw the following tour. In 1994, Gr¦nemeyer was the first non-English-speaking artist who was invited by MTV to do an unplugged concert. Four years later Gr¦nemeyer moved to London and released Bleibt alles anders (Everything Remains Different). He also founded his own record label, Gr¦nland Records. In the same year his brother Wilhelm and his wife Anna died of cancer (both dying within 3 days); it took Gr¦nemeyer a year to resume his work. In 2000 he recorded a concert with a philharmonic orchestra and released the DVD Stand der Dinge (State of Affairs). In August 2002 he released his so far most successful album Mensch (Human) which was awarded Platinum even before release due to advance orders. The single Mensch became Gr¦nemeyers first number one hit in Germany and 1.5 million people saw the 2-year tour. In 2004 and 2006 Gr¦nemeyer recorded songs for the Olympic Games in Athens (Everlasting) and the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany (Celebrate the Day).

In March 2007 he released his 12th studio album 12 which was followed by a stadium tour across German-speaking countries. Smaller concerts took place in September in Amsterdam, Munich, Dresden and Londons Royal Albert Hall.

The three re-recorded albums Whats all this, Luxus and Chaos for the English-speaking market were met with limited sales success. Gr¦nemeyer was scheduled to make his American debut on September 17, 2007 at the Beacon Theater in New York City, but the performance has since been postponed.

In January 2010, Gr¦nemeyer performed the anthem Komm zur Ruhr as part of the opening ceremony of the Ruhr.2010 - The city of Essen being the European Capital of Culture 2010 on behalf of the entire Ruhr area.

The magazine TIME awarded him the title of European Hero in 2005 for his humanitarian work.

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Герберт Артур Виглев Кламор ГрЕнемайер родился 12. Апреля 1956 младшим из трех сыновей Вильгельма ГрЕнемайера в ГЕтингене. Один из его братьев известный радиолог профессор медицины доктор Дитрих ГрЕнемайер. Еще в школьные времена Герберт организовал музыкальную группу, которая по окончании участниками школы развалилась.
1975 он начинает сочинять музыку и руководить хором в Актерской Школе города Бохум. Благодаря Петеру Цадеку ГрЕнемайеру впервые удалось выйти на сцену. Под руководством Цадека он играет на моногих известных театральных сценах, таки как: Дом Актеров Гамбурга, Городской Театр Штуттгарта и Свободная Народная Трибуна Берлина. Одновременно он снимается в фильмах, один из которых «Лодка» Вольфганга Петерса стал настоящим прорывом.
В музыке ГрЕнемайер имел меньше успехов - его первые два альбома распродавались очень плохо. Успех пришел лишь в 1984 с альбомом «4630 Bochum». 79 недель альбом продержался в хитпарадах и достиг невероятных для немецкого музыканта, до сих пор непревзойденных рекордов продаж. Также и последовавшие альбомы и синглы занимали верхние строки хитпарадов. Так, например, он явился первым не англоязычным музыкантом, прославившимся в известном музыкальном телеканале в передаче »MTV Unplugged«. Из этого в 1995 вышел CD «Unplugged».

1998 ГрЕнемайер пережил черные времена - один за другим ушли из жизни его брат Вильгельм и его жена - актриса Анна Хенкель ГрЕнемайер. Лишь через два года стало снова что-то слышно о ГрЕнемайере.
2002 вышел до сих пор известнейший альбом Mensch. Сингл Mensch стал его наиболее успешной и известной песней.