Heinz Kiessling

Heinz Kiessling (March 11, 1926 – December 27, 2003) was a German musician, conductor, composer and music producer, known mainly from his work for popular films and television programs.

Biography

Heinz Kiessling studied piano, composition and conducting, after World War II at the Nuremberg Conservatory from 1949 and started his career in 1949 as a pianist and got to play in different concerts around the world. Soon after he started working on recording music for television. In 1950, he began composing music in the jazz, dance and light music genres. At times, he also led his own orchestra, and also worked many years for the RIAS Big Band in Berlin. Together with the pianist Werner Tautz he established in 1964 the label "Brilliant" through which he managed numerous national and international big bands.

Kiessling worked with many national and international stars, including Chet Baker, Luis Bonfa, Wenche Myhre, and Caterina Valente. For over two decades, he accompanied the shows of Peter Alexander. In addition, Kiessling composed the songs and scene music for numerous films and television productions, including de, Zwei himmlische Töchter, Dingsda, Das Traumschiff and Aktenzeichen XY... ungelöst. In total he produced over 1200 tunes and also published some of his own recordings which made him become one of the most successful German "Easy listening" composers of the post-war period.

In 1969, Kiessling wrote "In The Shadow of the Moon" for Reprise, which later on became the theme song for Frank Sinatra's daughter Tina Sinatra TV mini-series Romeo und Julia 70.

His piece "Temptation Sensation" is used as the theme song for the FX and FXX TV show It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Other pieces such as "A La Bonheur" and "On Your Bike (Tandem-Holiday)" help to provide the score to the show.