Große Freiheit 36 is a music club on

Große Freiheit The Große Freiheit (German for: "Great Freedom") is a street starting on the North Side to Hamburg's Reeperbahn road in the St. Pauli quarter. It is part of the red-light district. History The street was named in 1610 after the fact that Co ...

street in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

St. Pauli St. Pauli (Sankt Pauli; ) is a quarter of the city of Hamburg belonging to the centrally located Hamburg-Mitte borough. Situated on the right bank of the Elbe river, the nearby Landungsbrücken is a northern part of the port of Hamburg. St. Pau ...

district. The

Kaiserkeller Kaiserkeller is a music club in the St. Pauli quarter of Hamburg, Germany, near the Reeperbahn. It was opened by Bruno Koschmider on 14 October 1959. The Beatles had a contract with Kaiserkeller to play there in 1960. History A Caribbean stee ...

is in its basement.

History

Already in the 1940s, the address was home to the "Hippodrom", a club that had been made famous in the films of

Hans Albers Hans Philipp August Albers (22 September 1891 – 24 July 1960), also known by his nickname “der blonde Hans” (The Blond Hans), was a German actor and singer. He was the biggest male movie star in Germany between 1930 and 1960 and one of the m ...

. It featured a rotunda filled with wood chips, in which guests and regular artistes would ride on horses. During the

second world war World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the building was destroyed by bomb attacks, but it was rebuilt after the end of the war.

Bruno Koschmider Bruno Koschmider (1926 – 2000) was a German entrepreneur in Hamburg, best known for employing the Beatles in the early 1960s. He controlled various businesses, such as the Bambi Kino, which was a cinema, the Indra club and the Kaiserkeller. P ...

(1926-2000), an ex-

trapeze A trapeze is a short horizontal bar hung by ropes, metal straps, or chains, from a ceiling support. It is an aerial apparatus commonly found in circus performances. Trapeze acts may be static, spinning (rigged from a single point), swinging or ...

artist, opened the Kaiserkeller in October 1959 at Große Freiheit 36 with place for 550 guests (not seated). On 19 September 1985 the music club opened under the current name ''Große Freiheit 36'' with a concert by the

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

guitarist

Rory Gallagher William Rory Gallagher ( ; 2 March 1948 – 14 June 1995) was an Irish musician, singer, and songwriter. Regarded as "Ireland's first rock star", he is known for his virtuosic style of guitar playing and live performances. He has sometim ...

. One year later, the Kaiserkeller reopened, and a Café was set up in the upper level. On 19 February 2015, the club hosted the concert for the preselection of the German entry to the

Eurovision Song Contest 2015 The Eurovision Song Contest 2015 was the 60th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Vienna, Austria, following the country's victory at the with the song "Rise Like a Phoenix" by Conchita Wurst. Organised by the European Broa ...

. File:Hamburg - Grosse Freiheit 36 und Kaiserkeller - 2016.JPG, Große Freiheit 36 at night File:Kaiserkeller, Grosse Freiheit 36.jpg, Große Freiheit 36 by day File:Große freiheit rockclub.jpg, The neon guitar sign over the main entrance

Selected concert history

1980s

Smokie, Abi Wallenstein,

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, Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes,

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1990s

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, Blur,

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, Die Fantastischen Vier,

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, Soft Parade

2000s

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, Swiss, Alligatoah,

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, Hoodie Allen,

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2010s

, Revolverheld,

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, R.Kelly,

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References

External links

Club website
{{Coord missing, Hamburg Nightclubs in Hamburg Music venues in Germany Buildings and structures in Hamburg-Mitte Music in Hamburg