Axel Heilhecker

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Axel Heilhecker, July 2008

Axel Manrico Heilhecker (born November 28, 1954 in Bergisch Gladbach ) is a German guitarist , composer , producer and singer .

Career

The first own recordings were published in 1969 by the WDR Big Band leader Harald Banter . In 1972, through the mediation of Joachim-Ernst Berendt, he took lessons from jazz trumpeter and ethnic musician Don Cherry .

From 1976 to 1981 he was a founding member of the Cologne Food Band , with Wolf Maahn , Helmut Zerlett , Dick W. Frangenberg , Matthias Keul, Werner Kopal, Jan Dix , Paco Saval . Two albums were recorded in London and published by Essex. From 1982 to 1986 he played in "Wolf Maahn und die Deserteure". After that he was guitarist and songwriter on all albums of the Wolf Maahn Band until 1993. He also appeared as a session musician and was a participant in various all-star bands within the German rock scene ( Klaus Lage , Marius Müller-Westernhagen , Herbert Grönemeyer , Rainhard Fendrich , Jane Palmer ).

During this period he was placed on the first places of the music polls by the specialist magazine Musikmagazin and other musician magazines in the guitarist category next to Michael Schenker , Peter Weihe and Uli Jon Roth .

In 1986 he took the stage free of charge at the Anti-WAAhnsinns Festival against the planned Wackersdorf reprocessing plant .

In 1990 he played recordings and a tour for the Unknown Cases .

From 1991 to 1993 he released 2 albums on EMI under his name and toured among other things as support for the last Deep Purple tour with the original line-up with Ritchie Blackmore . In 1994 he produced Thomas Kagermann's first German surround sound production, Eyem .

From 1995 to 2003 he was guitarist on the Harald Schmidt Show on Sat.1 and its continuation as Harald Schmidt on ARD from 2004. There were live recordings here with Jim Capaldi , Eric Burdon , Meat Loaf , and James Belushi, among others .

Heilhecker founded in 1995 together with the American Vanessa Vassar, who u. a. also has Indian ancestors, the avant-garde folk duo Phonoroid . 3 albums were produced by Heilhecker and various titles were published by music magazines on their supplement CDs, twice by the German Rolling Stone . Concerts were held in both Germany and the USA.

In 1997, Heilhecker and Harald Grosskopf founded the freestyle band Sunya Beat , with the assistance of Steve Baltes . 5 albums were produced, of which 3 albums are associated with the Burg Herzberg Festival and its label, where the band debuted and subsequently played as a headliner several times. In 1999 began a cooperation with the projection artist Mischa Kuball .

Since 2000 Heilhecker has published instrumental music under the pseudonym Fishmoon. There are three albums.

In 2000 his theater music for Conspiranoia , a work by the American writer Devon Jackson , premiered in Santa Fe , New Mexico .

He has been a producer since 1991. Of significance is his ethno-productions with Indian music professor and sitar virtuoso TN Nagar , a student Villayat Khan, the from Gambia originating Djembe poker players Samson Gassama and funded by Joachim Ernst Behrend flutist Andreas Ludwig.

Heilhecker is the founder and owner of the label "Phonokultur", on which he released the Sunya beat live album Comin 'Soon in 2006 and his second Fishmoon instrumental album Two Moon Music in 2007. He is the music and co-producer of the US documentary by Vanessa Vassar Cinderellas of Santa Fe , which received the 2007 IIFF Award for "Best US Documentary".

Heilhecker has been the author of the regular column Brettgeflüster in Grand Guitars magazine since 2006 , where he writes about his experiences as a guitarist and his favorite instruments.

In 2009 he released several recordings with ICP trumpeter Thomas Heberer and saxophonist Mel Collins .

In 2011 he played a tour for Chris Norman in Germany, Europe, Asia and Russia.

Since 2010 he has been touring with Harald Grosskopf as part of the re-release of his Synthesist album in Europe as well as in the USA and South America.

As a producer and guitarist

  • 1991 Axel Heilhecker - Strange Sex, EMI
  • 1993 Culture Cross, EMI
  • 1994 Thomas Kagermann - Eyem, Inakustik, first German surround sound CD
  • 1996 Phonoroid - Two Many Frames, Intuition,
  • 1998 Sunya Beat , EFA
  • 1999 Sunya Beat - Dehly Slide, Think Prog.
  • 1999 Phonoroid - Two Many Frames, Intuition
  • 1999 Gassama / Heilhecker - Wandyah, Think Prog.
  • 1999 Andreas Ludwig, Think Prog.
  • 2000 Axel Heilhecker - Fishmoon, Think Prog.
  • 2000 TN Nagar - Raga Moods, Think Prog.
  • 2001 Baltes, Grosskopf, Heilhecker, Manikin Rec.
  • 2003 American Waitress - Score, Backseat Prod.
  • 2004 Phonoroid - Cravin 'Astonishment, Intuition
  • 2005 Grosskopf, Baltes and Heilhecker - The Jelena Gora Sessions, Ricochet Dream
  • 2006 Cinderellas of Santa Fe - Soundtrack, Frontseat Prod.
  • 2006 Sunya Beat - Comin 'Soon, Phonoculture
  • 2007 Fishmoon - Two Moon Music, phonoculture
  • 2009 Fishmoon, Viana

Web links