Rolf Zuckowski (born 12 May 1947) is a German singer-songwriter. He has written and composed music especially for children, [1] but his songs are very popular among adults, too. His compositions involve children in music throughout their childhood and accompany their daily life. Meanwhile, many of his songs have attained the status of Folk songs. [2]
Zuckowski was born in Hamburg, Germany, and attended the Albrecht-Thaer-Gymnasium, where he completed his abitur. [3] He gained his first skills and experience as a musician in school at the age of 18. He was part of the school band "The BeAthovens," where he played the guitar and sang. In 1967, he released his first album, "Happy to be happy," and began to study Economics at Hamburg University. [3] After his graduation in 1972, Zuckowski worked for the music publishing firm International Music Publishers Hans Sikorski.
As a producer, composer and conductor, Zuckowski composed songs for several artists, such as the Swiss music group Peter, Sue & Marc. Together, they, repeatedly, took part in the Eurovision Song Contest.
In 1978, he released his first record for children, "Rolfs Vogelhochzeit" (Rolf's Wedding of the Birds) which is a German singspiel. In this record, he sings and tells the story of a bird couple that marries, builds a nest, and cares for offspring. Many songs followed, and Zuckowski's popularity increased. In 1979, Zuckowski published the album "Rolfs Schulweg-Hitparade," which promotes road safety to children in a musical manner. The album is a cooperation with the German aid agencies Ein Herz für Kinder (A Heart for Children) and "Kind und Verkehr."
Zuckowski became popular on the radio and gained international recognition with the song "Du da im Radio," the LP/MC "Radio Lollipop," and the radio-series "Hallo du da." He gained more recognition through several television appearances: In the German television series ZDF-Hitparade, he achieved the first place with his song "...und ganz doll mich." In 1982, he was invited to perform his songs "...und ganz doll mich" and, in 1987, "In der Weihnachtsbäckerei" (In the Christmas bakery) [4] in the entertainment television show Wetten, dass? (German for "Wanna Bet That...?").
In 1983, Zuckowski made the drafts for the album Tabaluga, for which he also composed various songs. The album turned into a great success. One year later, he developed the television show "Große Show für kleine Leute." In 1990, "Rolfs Vogelhochzeit" was shown on the German TV channel ZDF. Two years later, his song cycle "die Jahresuhr" and the new "Schulweg-Hitparade" were published as videos. In 1994, he set up his own company under the umbrella of the Universal Music Group. In 1999, he published the children's musical Der kleine Tag .
The hit theme song "We are the children of the Suderhof" from the popular children's TV show Neues vom Süderhof was composed by Zuckowski. [5]
Zuckowski has released 45 studio albums, 1 audio play, 2 live albums, 8 Christmas albums, 9 video albums, 14 compilations, 1 boxset, and 45 singles. [6]
Some of Zuckowski's other famous works are the songs "Wie schön, dass du geboren bist" (How wonderful it is that you were born), "Stups, der kleine Osterhase," and "Kommt wir woll’n Laterne laufen." He also writes songs for adults and sees himself as a singer songwriter for the whole family.
Thomas Johannes Gottschalk is a German radio and television host and entertainer. He is best known for hosting Wetten, dass..?, for many years Europe's biggest television show, which he steered to huge success in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and South Tyrol between 1987 and 2011. Until 2015, he was also the brand ambassador in television advertisements for Haribo confectionery.
Dieter Bohlen is a German songwriter, producer, singer and television personality. He first achieved fame as a member of pop duo Modern Talking in the 1980s, and has since produced numerous German and international artists. He was also a judge on casting shows Deutschland sucht den Superstar and Das Supertalent, having been present on all seasons of both shows until 2021.
Gerhard Höllerich, known professionally as Roy Black, was a German schlager singer and actor, who appeared in several musical comedies and starred in the 1989 TV series, Ein Schloß am Wörthersee.
Patrick Lindner is a German Volksmusik singer.
Rosenstolz was a German pop duo from Berlin that was active between 1991 and 2012 and had chart hits in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The duo consisted of singer AnNa R. and musician Peter Plate, who occasionally provided vocals. Rosenstolz achieved major chart success after the nineties, with five studio albums going to No. 1 in the German albums chart. Although the duo split up to pursue separate music careers, they left open the possibility of a future reunion.
Marq Porciuncula is a German singer, songwriter and occasional actor of Filipino descent.
Die Flippers were a German Schlager group formed in 1964. They were one of the most successful Schlager groups of all time, and have been constantly recording and releasing new music since their self-titled debut album was released in 1970. They have released 45 albums, 5 of which have gone platinum, 24 gold. They have won 11 Goldene Stimmgabel awards in 1988, 1991, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003 and 2004.
Kristina Bach is a German "Schlager", full Opera singer, lyricist, and music producer (Director). K. Bach is noted for her 3 ½-octave (f=1:8) vocal range.
The ZDF-Hitparade, or Hitparade for short, by German TV channel ZDF, was one of the most popular and most well-known music television series presenting mostly German Schlager. From 1969 to 1984 the presenter was Dieter Thomas Heck. The last show was aired on 16 December 2000.
Andrea Ferber, known professionally as Andrea Berg, is a German Schlager singer. She performed at carnivals as a child and began her career in 1992 after being discovered by record producer Eugen Römer. While she released her first studio album Du bist frei that same year, her commercial breakthrough took place with its follow-up Gefühle, released in 1995. The collaboration between Berg and Römer spawned a string of commercially successful albums, with her albums Machtlos (2003), Du (2004), Splitternackt (2006), and Zwischen Himmel & Erde (2009) topping the German charts. Her compilation album Best Of, released in 2001, is the album that spent the most weeks on the charts in Germany and Austria. Between 2010 and 2018, Berg worked with Dieter Bohlen, who produced her albums Schwerelos (2010), Abenteuer (2011), Atlantis (2013), and Seelenbeben (2016), all of which topped the German and Austrian album charts.
Claudia Jung is a German Schlager singer and politician.
Hanne Haller was a German pop singer, composer, writer, producer, and sound engineer.
The Goldene Stimmgabel was an annual prize awarded within the German music scene from 1981 to 2007.
Tom Astor is a German singer and composer. He is noted for his extensive country and western recordings. He has worked with Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson, Dolly Parton, Kenny Rogers, John Denver, The Bellamy Brothers, Willie Nelson, Billy Ray Cyrus, George Jones, Wanda Jackson and Charlie McCoy among others.
Oliver Michael Dittrich is a German television personality, comedian, actor, and musician.
Neues vom Süderhof is a German children's television series. The heart of the series are the five Brendel children who live on the Süderhof farm. Dr. Günther Brendel is a veterinarian and his wife Sonia is an author writing a book about parenting. They live with their two daughters, Bimbo and Molle, and next-door live Grandma and Grandpa Brendel. After Günther's brother and sister-in-law are killed in a plane crash, Sonia and Günther adopt their children, Dany, Peggy, and Benny. Thus, the series chronicles the experiences of these five children and their lives on the Süderhof farm.
Dieter Thomas Heck was a German television presenter, singer and actor. He is known as the presenter of the popular TV program ZDF-Hitparade, featuring German Schlager music, from 1969 to 1984, reaching millions of people. As an actor, he starred in the TV play Das Millionenspiel in 1970.
Veronika Fischer is a German singer.
Der kleine Tag is a story by Wolfram Eicke which became known in a musical version in collaboration with Rolf Zuckowski and Hans Niehaus. The story was published in 1988. The musical, for children but not only children, first appeared in print in 1998, and as an audio play and CD in 1999 when it premiered at the Münchner Planetarium. The musical is often presented on stage, both by professionals and by schools and music academies. It received several awards.
Gerd Günther Grabowski, better known by his stage name G. G. Anderson, is a German Schlager singer, composer, and music producer.
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