Ralph Siegel (born 30 September 1945) is a German record producer and songwriter. Siegel is one of the most notable figures at the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), often known simply as Eurovision, is an international Music competition, song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) among its members since 1956. Each participating broadcaster ...

, in which he has participated with 24 songs so far, among them the 1982 winner song Ein bisschen Frieden.

Life and career

Ralph Siegel was born the son of composer and of singer Ingeborg Döderlein. Siegel is a prolific producer in the German genre of

Schlager music Schlager (, " hit(s)") is a style of European popular music and radio format generally defined by catchy instrumental accompaniments to vocal pieces of pop music with simple, easygoing, and often sentimental lyrics. Schlager tracks are typ ...

. Since the early 1970s, he worked with artists like

Udo Jürgens Jürgen Udo Bockelmann (30 September 1934 – 21 December 2014), generally known as Udo Jürgens, was an Austrian composer and singer of popular music whose career spanned over 50 years. He won the Eurovision Song Contest 1966 for Austria, ...

Mary Roos Mary Roos (born Rosemarie Schwab on 9 January 1949) is a German singer and actress. Biography 1949–1970 Schwab was born in Bingen am Rhein, Bingen. At the age of nine, she recorded her first song "Ja die Dicken sind ja so gemütlich" as ''Di ...

, Heino, Rex Gildo,

Michael Holm Michael Holm (born Lothar Walter; on 29 July 1943) is a German singer, musician, songwriter and record producer. He is primarily known as a singer of Schlager music. Although his first appearance in the hit parade was in 1962 ("Lauter schöne ...

, Chris Roberts, Costa Cordalis,

Mireille Mathieu Mireille Mathieu (; born July 22, 1946) is a French singer. She has recorded over 1,200 songs in eleven languages, with more than 122 million records sold worldwide. Biography and career Early years Mireille Mathieu was born on July 22, 1946, ...

, Peter Alexander, Roy Black, Karel Gott and Marianne Rosenberg. Since 1972 has participated with 24 songs in the Eurovision Song Contest, the latest being the

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

Sammarinese entry " Spirit of the Night" by Valentina Monetta and Jimmie Wilson. In 1982, Siegel's and Bernd Meinunger's song Ein bißchen Frieden (A Little Peace), performed by Nicole won the Contest and became a hit in Europe. In 2003, both writers had success with Let's Get Happy, performed by Lou which came in 11th. In February 2010, it was announced by RTÉ that he would have an entry in the Irish National Final-Eurosong 2010. The song titled ''River of Silence'' was performed by Lee Bradshaw. It finished in last place. He also composed 'C'était ma vie', performed by

Lys Assia Rosa Mina Schärer (3 March 1924 – 24 March 2018), known by her stage name Lys Assia, was a Swiss singer who won the first Eurovision Song Contest in . Assia was born in Rupperswil, Aargau, and began her stage career as a dancer, but changed ...

for representing Switzerland in the Eurovision Song Contest. She reached an 8th position in Swiss National Final. Siegel organized a comeback event for the Disco band

Dschinghis Khan Dschinghis Khan (; "Genghis Khan") is a German Eurodisco Pop music, pop band. It was originally formed in Munich in Eurovision Song Contest 1979, 1979 to compete in the Eurovision Song Contest with their song "Dschinghis Khan (song), Dschinghis K ...

in June 2018. Dschinghis Khan had been originally organized by Siegel and Dr. Bernd Meinunger to compete in the 1979 Eurovision Song Contest. After the success of their first hit,

, both men continued to write popular songs for this band, including " Moskau" and "Hadschi Halef Omar". Siegel makes a rare appearance playing classical guitar in 1984 video footage of Dschinghis Khan performing "Corrida" and "Olé Olé". In 2021, Siegel premiered his musical ''Zeppelin''.

Personal life

Hochzeit 2018 von Ralph Siegel mit Frau Laura Siegel

Ralph Siegel's first marriage was to Dunja Siegel from Slovakia in 1975, with whom he had two daughters Giulia Siegel (born 1974) and Marcella Siegel (born 1976). The couple divorced in 1989. In 1992 he married Dagmar Kögel, (née Weber). His third daughter Alana Siegel was born in 1996. The couple separated in 2002. His third marriage to the soprano Kriemhild Siegel, (née Jahn), lasted from 2006 until the official separation in August 2014. The legal divorce then took place in 2016. In 2015 he met the Swiss music manager Laura Käfer. After a three-year relationship, the couple got married in September 2018 in the church Grünwald near

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

. Laura Siegel brought her daughter Ruby Siegel (born 2000), (née Käfer) into the marriage.

Eurovision Song Contest participations

National final participations

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Siegel, Ralph 1945 births Living people German male songwriters German record producers Eurovision Song Contest-winning songwriters Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest Musicians from Munich Officers Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany