Götz Alsmann
Biography Götz Alsmann
Prof. Dr. Götz Alsmann
was born on 12 July 1957 in Münster. He is a multi-instrumentalist, singer, showmaster, presenter, speaker, music producer, arranger, collector and researcher - or, in short, a born entertainer: with his inimitable, often slightly anarchic charm, Dr Götz Alsmann has been entertaining his audiences very well and with great pleasure for decades, on stages of all sizes as well as on radio and television. The fact that he is a native and enthusiastic Münster resident is mentioned in most reports about him. His connection to the University of Münster, on the other hand, is less frequently mentioned, but no less close.
From 1977, Götz Alsmann studied German language and literature, journalism and musicology at the University of Münster. Incidentally, the latter was based in the northern Kavaliershäuschen in front of the palace, exactly where the office of the WWU Münster Alumni Club is located today. In addition to his many active musical endeavours, both locally and nationally, Götz Alsmann gave them a solid academic foundation in 1985 with his doctorate. The title of his dissertation was ‘Nothing but noise: The independent record companies and the development of American popular music 1943-1963’.
Götz Alsmann has been presenting music programmes on the radio since 1985, and on TV just one year later. He has regularly released albums and toured extensively since 1974. From 1996, alongside Christine Westermann, he also turned the WDR programme ‘Zimmer frei!’, originally intended as a stopgap, into a twenty-year success story, including the Grimme Prize in 2000. When he wasn't winning other awards himself (including several Jazz-ECHOs and the NRW State Order of Merit in 2019), he was often seen as a witty presenter of award ceremonies.
In 2011, his alma mater also honoured him and made him an honorary professor; since then, he has taught the history of popular music at the University of Münster's School of Music. In 2012, he gave his inaugural lecture as a one-hour ‘semi-concert lecture’ with 15 songs and three encores - and surprised his audience with a rather unusual confession for an old stage hand like him: ‘I haven't been this nervous since my first kiss!’ (Text: Tim Stelzer)
