Jo van Nelsen - Grammophonlesung for the 100th Birthday and Death Anniversary of Friedrich Hollaender

Grammophonlesung

In his new gramophone reading, Jo van Nelsen puts the spotlight on the remarkable life of Friedrich Hollaender - a true all-rounder who composed for theatre, cabaret and film, and almost always wrote his own lyrics too.

Hollaender ran a cabaret, authored several books (including the notable emigre novel "Menschliches Treibgut"), and counted many stars among his friends - above all Marlene Dietrich, for whom he wrote some of her greatest hits, both in Berlin and Hollywood. He was one of the few German emigres to build a real career in Hollywood as a film composer, earning an Oscar nomination along the way. Yet he never truly felt at home in America... In the mid-1950s he returned to Germany, where he experienced first-hand the cold reception awaiting those who came back from exile.

It is fair to say: Hollaender's life was as colourful and as tragic as his chansons and popular songs.

Marking the 50th anniversary of his death in 2026, Jo van Nelsen pays tribute to one of the most creative minds in German entertainment - with shellac records, photographs and generous readings from Hollaender's own books.