Armin Kämpf

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Armin Willi Kämpf (born August 16, 1926 in Leipzig ; † October 8, 2007 in Berlin ) was a German pop singer and impresario .

Life

Armin Willi Kämpf was born as the son of the merchants Max and Karoline Kämpf in Leipzig; he was an only child. From 1947 to 1949 Kämpf studied piano and singing at the Leipzig University of Music .

In 1949 he began his career as a singer; he was vocal soloist with the Leipzig Radio Orchestra under the direction of Kurt Henkels . In 1951 Kämpf left the GDR and went to West Germany . From December 1951 to November 1952 he worked as a singer and announcer with the Eisrevue in Garmisch-Partenkirchen , with which he also went on tour through Switzerland . From 1953 to 1958 he worked as a singer and, due to his sporting talent, also as an ice dancer at the ice revue Holiday on Ice .

In 1958 he met the pop singer Bärbel Wachholz at the Berliner Rundfunk ; then Kämpf returned to the GDR. He became Wachholz 'manager, mentor, impresario and constant companion. On April 9, 1962, he married Bärbel Wachholz. The marriage resulted in a son (* 1970). Wachholz died in 1984.

In the early 1960s, Kämpf resumed his own career as a solo singer. In the following years he became one of the most famous pop singers in the GDR. He often sang hits that Gerd Natschinski had composed especially for him. His successful hit titles included Wenn ein Junges Mädchen weint (Natschinski / Loose), Wenn Suchaswas geht (Stüwe / Berling), but especially the duets with Bärbel Wachholz: Two young hearts (Spencer / Loose) and Sing for me (Natschinski /East). Wachholz / Kämpf's hit recordings were published by the Amiga record label, among others . Kämpf was also represented on samplers with GDR hits several times.

For Wachholz he also wrote the scripts for several revues and solo programs; he also appeared together with Wachholz in their show programs. In the late 1960s he ended his career as a singer.

From 1969 to 1973 he was managing director of the Lindencorso Berlin . From the late 1980s Kämpf worked as an impresario, from 1987 to 1989 with the Salon-Orchester Leipzig. After the reunification he continued to work as an impresario. In 1990 he brought Caterina Valente and Helmut Zacharias (with the orchestra directors Jürgen Hermann and Günter Gollasch) to concerts at the Volksbühne Berlin .

After Wachholz's death, Kämpf lived alone in a one-room apartment on Fischerinsel in Berlin. Armin Kämpf spent the last years of his life completely withdrawn with his son's family in Berlin-Marzahn .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e Armin Kämpf Vita (website about Bärbel Wachholz )
  2. ↑ a b c d music legends of the east (interview with Armin Kämpf, 2004)
  3. ↑ Armin Kämpf entry at Discogs
personal data
SURNAME Fight, Armin
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Kämpf, Armin Willi (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German pop singer and impresario
DATE OF BIRTH August 16, 1926
PLACE OF BIRTH Leipzig
DATE OF DEATH October 8, 2007
Place of death Berlin