Klaus Nomi

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Klaus Nomi's real name was Klaus Sperber. He was born in 1944 in Immenstadt in Bavaria and grew up in the Ruhr area. As a boy he listened to opera, especially to Maria Callas, but he also bought records by Elvis Presley. In West Berlin he learned to sing as a baritone. He worked as a pastry chef and as an usher at the Deutsche Oper, where he sang arias for the staff after performances. In 1972 he left for New York.

Music and breakthrough

There he attracted attention in 1978 during an evening at Irving Plaza. In a tight space suit with a transparent cape he sang an aria from Saint-Saëns's Samson et Dalila, after which he disappeared amid strobe light and smoke bombs. He then performed in clubs such as the Mudd Club and Max's Kansas City. With the songwriter Kristian Hoffman he put together a repertoire of his own songs such as Total Eclipse and the Nomi Song, and covers of pop songs from the 1960s, such as Lightnin' Strikes. In 1979 he was one of David Bowie's backing singers on Saturday Night Live. He made two albums, Klaus Nomi (1981) and Simple Man (1982).

Influence

Nomi combined opera, synthesizer pop and vaudeville. He sang in a high countertenor and wore heavy make-up, a plastic costume and a striking hairstyle. His performances made him a well-known figure in the art scene of the East Village. In 1983 he died of the effects of AIDS. He was one of the first well-known artists to die of the disease, at a time when even his friends did not dare to visit.

Listening

Discography

Studio albums

• 1981Klaus Nomi
• 1982Simple Man
• 2007Za Bakdaz

In School of Rock

The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.

• Mixtape 7: The 1980s^NL Reader

See also

• Klaus Nomi