Sebastian Stert: Hilde

Room by Night - Jazz Ballads by Hildegard Knef

While searching for German jazz standards, singer Sebastian Stert (aka BAX) came across the songs of Hildegard Knef. The selected lyrics tell of a room at night, in the middle of the big city at night, of lethargic loneliness and the ambitious struggle for freedom, love and happiness.

With her songs, Hildegard Knef brought new color to dreary post-war Germany.

The multi-talented Knef was not only a star as a singer and actress on Broadway and in Hollywood, but also very successful as an author.

In her song lyrics, she created small lyrical close-ups which, in combination with the compositions of Hans Hammerschmid, Charly Niessen and Günther Noris, merge into a perfect combination of text and music, making them one of the few German jazz standards. Between the songs, actor Christof Düro reads from Hildegard Knef's autobiography "Der geschenkte Gaul".