Background
Karlheinz Zöller was born in Höhr-Grenzhausen, near Frankfurt, Westerwald, Germany.
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Karlheinz Zoller
Edit ProfileEducation
He began his studies in Frankfurt and later studied with Kurt Redel in Detmold. He had not yet attended college but the experience was invaluable.
Career
After World World War II, at the age of 17, he obtained a position in the Frankfurt Opera Orchestra. After engagements in Cologne and Herford, he joined the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra as solo flautist in 1960.' In 1968, Zöller was appointed professor at the Hamburg Music Academy, and later he taught at the Hochschule der Künste in Berlin and at the Hamburg Music Academy. Zöller was a tremendous supporter of new music and commissioned flute concerti from several composers.
These included new works by Siegfried Matthus, Diether de la Motte, Manfred Trojahn and Isang Yun.
In 1968, while travelling in a taxi from the hotel to the concert hall in Buenos Aires, Zöller was critically injured in an accident. The cab driver died and Zöller’s lung was pierced by a piece of metal.
This severely limited his lung capacity and as a result he was replaced by James Galway as principal flautist with the Berlin Philharmonic. However, he remained active as a chamber and solo player and maintained a busy teaching and concert schedule.
Later, in the 1970s, he had an operation to reattach his non-functional lung.
The operation was a success and Zöller regained his position as principal flautist with the Philharmonic, when Galway left to teach at the Eastman School of Music.
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Born
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Died
July 29, 2005 (aged 76) -
Nationality
Germany