- Triumvirat
Infobox musical artist
Name = Triumvirat
Img_capt =
Years_active = 1969-1980
Background = group_or_band
Origin =Cologne ,Germany
Country =Germany
Genre =Progressive rock ,symphonic rock
Label = Harvest, Capitol
Past_members =Hans Bathelt Jürgen Fritz Werner "Dick" FragenbergHans Pape Helmut Köllen Barry PalmerDieter Petereit Curt Cress David Hanselmann Mattias Holtmann Werner Kopal Arno Steffen
URL = [http://www.triumvirat.net www.triumvirat.net]Triumvirat was a German
progressive rock trio that formed in 1969 inCologne ,Germany . The founding members were: keyboardist/composer Hans-Jürgen (later simply Jürgen) Fritz, drummer/lyricist Hans Bathelt, and bassist Werner Frangenberg.Meaning of name
In German and French, Triumvirat is the word for a
Triumvirate (see that article for historical institution of that name).History
Formation
During its early years, Triumvirat initially played Top 40 songs at local venues in Cologne.
The Nice andEmerson, Lake and Palmer heavily influenced Triumvirat’s musical direction and the band incorporated some of Nice/ELP music into their repertoire ("Rondo" among others). In fact, at the height of their fame during the 70’s prog rock era, Triumvirat was often referred to as the ‘German Emerson, Lake & Palmer’ or ‘ELP clone’ due to Fritz's classical virtuosity on keyboards and synthesizers.Record contract
In the early 1970s, the band sent a demo tape to
EMI Records in Cologne and won their first record contract. Triumvirat subsequently produced modestly successful albums during the early to mid-1970s, including "Mediterranean Tales: Across The Waters" and "Illusions on a Double Dimple" and toured the United States withFleetwood Mac to support "Illusions on a Double Dimple", playing the album in its entirety. In 1975, Triumvirat reached the apex of their commercial success with the release of "Spartacus", which is considered by many as a classic "prog rock" masterpiece album, along with "Illusions on a Double Dimple".The band underwent numerous personnel changes over the course of its life and eventually disbanded in 1980 with the release of their final album "Russian Roulette". An officially-authorized biography of the group was written by Russell Schenewerk and appears on www.triumvirat.net.
Helmut Köllen
Vocalist/bassist Helmut Köllen (performing on the band's most successful albums, "Illusions" and "Spartacus"). Köllen left the band after "Spartacus" to pursue a solo career. On May 3, 1977, at the age of 27, he died from carbon monoxide poisoning while listening to some of his studio tracks in his car's cassette player while running the engine in his garage.
Discography
tudio Albums
*"
Mediterranean Tales " (1972)
*"Illusions on a Double Dimple " (1974)
*"Spartacus" (1975)
*"Old Loves Die Hard " (1976)
*"Pompeii" (1977)
*"A La Carte" (1978)
*"Russian Roulette" (1980)ingles/EPs
*
Take a Break Today/The Capitol of Power (2000)External links
* [http://www.triumvirat.net Official band website]
* [http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=392 TRIUMVIRAT discography, MP3, videos and reviews] retrieved 7-30-07
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