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Arndt Bause (30 November 1936 - 11 February 2003) was a
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...
composer of
popular songs Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fun ...
. Arndt Bause produced more than 1350 dance music melodies, many of which became "hits", which meant that he had a decisive influence on the music scene in
East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...
for this genre. Many of his compositions have acquired "Evergreen" status.


Life

Arndt Bause was born in
Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as wel ...
, the fourth of the recorded children of Werner Bause, an accountant, and his wife Emma. For several years, starting in 1948, Arndt Bause was made to learn the piano: by 1955 he had been captivated by music in general and
Boogie-woogie Boogie-woogie is a genre of blues music that became popular during the late 1920s, developed in African-American communities since 1870s.Paul, Elliot, ''That Crazy American Music'' (1957), Chapter 10, p. 229. It was eventually extended from pian ...
in particular. He made progress as a
self taught Autodidacticism (also autodidactism) or self-education (also self-learning and self-teaching) is education without the guidance of masters (such as teachers and professors) or institutions (such as schools). Generally, autodidacts are individu ...
musician and started to appear in several bands, both as a pianist and as an
accordionist Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a reed i ...
. Between 1960 and 1963 he was also taking
trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the Standing wave, air column ...
lessons. Meanwhile, out of deference to his father's wishes, he had embarked on an apprenticeship in the relatively secure trade of
glass blowing Glassblowing is a glassforming technique that involves inflating molten glass into a bubble (or parison) with the aid of a blowpipe (or blow tube). A person who blows glass is called a ''glassblower'', ''glassmith'', or ''gaffer''. A '' lampworke ...
, which in 1954 he completed. By the time he completed his
glass blowing Glassblowing is a glassforming technique that involves inflating molten glass into a bubble (or parison) with the aid of a blowpipe (or blow tube). A person who blows glass is called a ''glassblower'', ''glassmith'', or ''gaffer''. A '' lampworke ...
apprenticeship his performing career had progressed to a point where he felt able to leave glass blowing on one side and focus on the music. He was a member of various groups which were soon getting contracts for concert and theatre work. On 6 October 1959 he married Angret Hinsch, the daughter of a
plumber A plumber is a tradesperson who specializes in installing and maintaining systems used for potable (drinking) water, and for sewage and drainage in plumbing systems.
from
Schwerin Schwerin (; Mecklenburgisch dialect, Mecklenburgian Low German: ''Swerin''; Latin: ''Suerina'', ''Suerinum'') is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Germany, second-largest city of the northeastern States of Germany, German ...
. Their three daughters were born in 1962, 1965 and 1968. With a growing family to support, Bause's income from music proved insufficient, and he returned to his trade of
glass blowing Glassblowing is a glassforming technique that involves inflating molten glass into a bubble (or parison) with the aid of a blowpipe (or blow tube). A person who blows glass is called a ''glassblower'', ''glassmith'', or ''gaffer''. A '' lampworke ...
. He never abandoned the music, but there was no longer time to follow an extensive performance schedule, and he turned increasingly to composing. In 1962 an orchestral composition was accepted for transmission on the radio. Soon afterwards, teaming up with the lyricist Dieter Schneider, he began to produce a series of hit songs. The collaboration with Schnieder brought Bause into the East German world of
Schlager music Schlager music (, " hit(s)") is a style of European popular music that is generally a catchy instrumental accompaniment to vocal pieces of pop music with simple, happy-go-lucky, and often sentimental lyrics. Typical Schlager tracks are eith ...
. In 1964 the two of them came up with "He, Joe" which in 1964, sung by Gypsy, reached top place in the "Tip Parade", a
hit parade A hit parade is a ranked list of the most popular recordings at a given point in time, usually determined either by sales or airplay. The term originated in the 1930s; ''Billboard'' magazine published its first music hit parade on January 4, 1936 ...
-style ranking at this time organised by the
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. Further successes followed, with songs written not just for Gypsy, but also for ,
Frank Schöbel Frank Schöbel (born 11 December 1942, Leipzig, Saxony, Germany) is a German musician. He was one of the most successful pop singers in socialist East Germany (GDR), and has continued to perform even after German reunification. Career As the se ...
and Andreas Holm. In addition to Schneider, he was also working with lyricists such as and
Kurt Demmler Kurt Demmler (12 September 1943 Posen – 3 February 2009 Berlin) was a German songwriter, who in the earlier part of his life was a dissident East German songwriter. Accused of alleged sexual abuse of underage girls during castings for a fem ...
. By 1968 his compositions were bringing in enough money to enable him to abandon
glass blowing Glassblowing is a glassforming technique that involves inflating molten glass into a bubble (or parison) with the aid of a blowpipe (or blow tube). A person who blows glass is called a ''glassblower'', ''glassmith'', or ''gaffer''. A '' lampworke ...
again, this time for good. He was able to use some of the time saved to undertake an external course in composition and tonal structure (''"Tonsatz"'') at the "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" Music Academy in
Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as wel ...
between 1969 and 1974. In 1975 Bause relocated with his family from
Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as wel ...
to Berlin. In April 1976 they acquired a plot of land in Berlin-Biesdorf, which is where Arndt would live for the rest of his life. The later 1970s were a period of intense collaboration with the singer Jürgen Walter. Between 1976 and 1982 they produced three LPs, incorporating demanding lyricss by
Gisela Steineckert Gisela Steineckert (born 13 May 1931) is a German writer known for her books and song lyrics. She has also written numerous radio plays and several film scripts. In terms of published output she was particularly prolific before 1989, but her p ...
. In 1979 he wrote the melody for
Jürgen Hart Jürgen Hart (20 September 1942 - 9 April 2002) was an East German music teacher who became a popular cabaret performer after his song, "Sing, mei Sachse, sing", became an overnight hit. Biography Early years Jürgen Hart was born during the Secon ...
's Sing mei Sachse sing, which became his top selling title and featured on an LP entitled "Hart auf Hart" with which the two of them followed up the success of the
single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...
. In the 1980s
Helga Hahnemann Helga "Big Helga" Hahnemann (8 September 1937 - 20 November 1991) was an East Germany, East German multi-faceted stage performer and entertainer. She came to wider prominence through her television and radio appearances after 1962. By the time Ger ...
became the leading performer of Bause's songs, using lyrics by Angela Gentzmer. It was later reported that the professional collaboration with Hahnemann began after she accused him, "I never get any hits from you" (''in their shared Leipzig variant of German: "Ick krieg wohl keenen Hit von Ihnen?"''). By the time of her death in November 1991 their professional partnership was complemented by a close family friendship. Bause also wrote film music. His output included the music for two television films based on "talking head"-style monologues from Maxie Wander's book, "Guten Morgen, Du Schone" (''"Good Morning My Lovely"'') and 24 "trick films" (animations) from the national film studio of which "The Flying windmills" (''"Die fliegende Windmühle"'') became probably the best known. Working with librettiste Gerda Malig he also wrote, the musical "Gesang der Grille", which had its premier in 1987 at the Popular Theatre (''"Volkstheater"'') in
Halberstadt Halberstadt ( Eastphalian: ''Halverstidde'') is a town in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt, the capital of Harz district. Located north of the Harz mountain range, it is known for its old town center that was greatly destroyed by Allied bombi ...
, followed by a successful tour of the country that included Berlin's Metropol Theatre (as it was then known). After the changes that led to
reunification A political union is a type of political entity which is composed of, or created from, smaller polities, or the process which achieves this. These smaller polities are usually called federated states and federal territories in a federal governm ...
in 1990 there was less demand for his music as audiences in East Germany, for the first time, had unfettered exposure to the more diverse palette of
West German West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
Schlager music Schlager music (, " hit(s)") is a style of European popular music that is generally a catchy instrumental accompaniment to vocal pieces of pop music with simple, happy-go-lucky, and often sentimental lyrics. Typical Schlager tracks are eith ...
. The death of
Helga Hahnemann Helga "Big Helga" Hahnemann (8 September 1937 - 20 November 1991) was an East Germany, East German multi-faceted stage performer and entertainer. She came to wider prominence through her television and radio appearances after 1962. By the time Ger ...
in 1991 also removed from stage and screen someone who had, by that time, become the leading performer of his music. Arndt Bause died in Berlin suddenly, but surrounded by his family, following a major
pulmonary embolism Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a blockage of an pulmonary artery, artery in the lungs by a substance that has moved from elsewhere in the body through the bloodstream (embolism). Symptoms of a PE may include dyspnea, shortness of breath, chest pain p ...
.


Family

The eldest daughter of Arndt and Angret Bause, Katrin Gawenda, became the first "Miss DDR" (''"Miss East Germany"'') when, in 1986, the
régime In politics, a regime (also "régime") is the form of government or the set of rules, cultural or social norms, etc. that regulate the operation of a government or institution and its interactions with society. According to Yale professor Juan J ...
cautiously, and under conditions of bizarre secrecy, arranged a national beauty pageant inside a large temporarily reassigned fire station in
Berlin-Marzahn Marzahn () is a locality within the borough of Marzahn-Hellersdorf in Berlin. Berlin's 2001 administrative reform led to the former boroughs of Marzahn and Hellersdorf fusing into a single new borough. In the north the Marzahn locality includes ...
. Her participation in the contest, which initially came as a surprise, resulted from a prank by her then husband, Christian Gawenda. Although her beauty was never in doubt, interviewed many years later she implied that her win might also have owed something to her aptitude as an interviewee. Asked by the moderator to name her favourite hobby, she replied, uncontroversially, that it was fishing. As a follow-up question she was asked about the biggest fish she had ever caught. "6ft2, 75 kilos, my husband Christian" (''"1,86 Meter groß, 75 Kilo schwer. Mein Mann Christian."'') The reply captured the spirit of the times and of the event: the audience applauded, shortly after which she received the crown. Their youngest daughter,
Inka Bause Inka Bause (born 21 November 1968 in Leipzig) is a German schlager singer, TV presenter and actress. External links
, embarked on her own career as a singer in 1985, at this point performing her father's songs. More recently she has also appeared as a television presenter of popular entertainment shows.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bause, Arndt
Musicians from Leipzig 20th-century German composers Light music composers German songwriters German television composers Schlager musicians East German musicians Recipients of the National Prize of East Germany 1936 births 2003 deaths