Ladi Geisler
| Ladi Geisler | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Ladislav Geisler |
| Also known as | "Ladi" |
| Born | November 27, 1927 Prague, Czechoslovakia |
| Died | November 19, 2011 Hamburg |
| Genres | Easy listening, instrumental, jazz, big band |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instruments | Guitar, Bass guitar, trumpet, violin |
| Years active | 1945–2010 |
| Labels | Polydor, Bear Family |
Miloslav Ladislav "Ladi" Geisler (November 27, 1927 – November 19, 2011) was a German musician who established a high profile in the post-war German music scene. Best known for his work with pop musicians Bert Kaempfert, James Last and Freddy Quinn, Geisler developed the distinctive "Knack-Bass" percussive bass sound that helped popularize the Bert Kaempfert Orchestra. He later released numerous records under his own name.
As a child, Geisler received violin lessons and soon learned the trumpet. He first worked as an engineer in the electric company where his father was as a director. In the last phase of World War II, Geisler was drafted into the German Air Force, where he worked on the combat aircraft Heinkel He 162. While on a mission, he was captured by the British and was interned in a Danish POW camp. With the help of a fellow prisoner, Geisler built an electric guitar and learned as a self-taught player. His role model was Oscar Moore, guitarist of singer Nat King Cole. In the camp he also made the acquaintance of the German musician Horst Wende, who brought him after discharge to Germany and made him a guitarist of his "Horst Wende Trio."
Geisler did some work for the NWDR, and after the spin-off of the NDR in 1955, he received a permanent position as a guitarist in the NDR Dance Orchestra under the direction of Franz Thon. Continuing to play with Wende, he signed a contract with the record company Polydor. In addition, while appearing with the Wende band in the Hamburg night club "Tarantella," Geisler met Freddy Quinn, with whom he developed a long-term recording relationship. Until the early 1960s Geisler participated in numerous recordings with Quinn.
By this time, Geisler had already become a known guitarist. At NDR he was used in many ways, such as with the NDR Symphony Orchestra and at the premiere of a work by Pierre Boulez at the Edinburgh Festival. In addition to Polydor, he also worked for other record companies and accompanied other singers like Evelyn Künneke, Greetje Kauffeld, Friedel Hensch, Esther and Abi Ofarim and Hildegard Knef.
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