Bernhard Sekles
Encyclopedia
Bernhard Sekles was a German
composer
, conductor, pianist
and pedagogue.
Bernhard Sekles was born in Frankfurt am Main, the son of Maximilian Seckeles and Anna, (née Bischheim). The family name Seckeles was changed by Bernhard Sekles to Sekles. From 1894 to 1895 he was the third Kapellmeister
at the Stadttheater in Mainz
. In 1896 he became a teacher at the Hoch'sche Konservatorium
in Frankfurt am Main; here he started the first jazz
class anywhere in 1928. He was the director of the Hoch'sche Konservatorium from 1923 to 1933. His composition students included Paul Hindemith
, Rudi Stephan
, Theodor W. Adorno
, Max Rudolf, and Erich Schmid
. He was one of the first German Jewish academics to lose his job when Hitler
came to power in Germany. He died in his native Frankfurt am Main.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, conductor, pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
and pedagogue.
Bernhard Sekles was born in Frankfurt am Main, the son of Maximilian Seckeles and Anna, (née Bischheim). The family name Seckeles was changed by Bernhard Sekles to Sekles. From 1894 to 1895 he was the third Kapellmeister
Kapellmeister
Kapellmeister is a German word designating a person in charge of music-making. The word is a compound, consisting of the roots Kapelle and Meister . The words Kapelle and Meister derive from the Latin: capella and magister...
at the Stadttheater in Mainz
Mainz
Mainz under the Holy Roman Empire, and previously was a Roman fort city which commanded the west bank of the Rhine and formed part of the northernmost frontier of the Roman Empire...
. In 1896 he became a teacher at the Hoch'sche Konservatorium
Hoch Conservatory
Dr. Hoch’s Konservatorium - Musikakademie was founded in Frankfurt am Main on September 22, 1878. Through the generosity of Frankfurter Joseph Hoch, who bequeathed the Conservatory one million German gold marks in his testament, a school for music and the arts was established for all age groups. ...
in Frankfurt am Main; here he started the first jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
class anywhere in 1928. He was the director of the Hoch'sche Konservatorium from 1923 to 1933. His composition students included Paul Hindemith
Paul Hindemith
Paul Hindemith was a German composer, violist, violinist, teacher, music theorist and conductor.- Biography :Born in Hanau, near Frankfurt, Hindemith was taught the violin as a child...
, Rudi Stephan
Rudi Stephan
Rudi Stephan , was a German composer of great promise who shortly before the First World War was considered one of the leading talents among his generation....
, Theodor W. Adorno
Theodor W. Adorno
Theodor W. Adorno was a German sociologist, philosopher, and musicologist known for his critical theory of society....
, Max Rudolf, and Erich Schmid
Erich Schmid
Erich Schmid was a Swiss composer and conductor. He was born on January 1, 1907 in Balsthal, Switzerland and died December 17, 2000 in Zürich. He studied composition with Bernhard Sekles at the Hoch Conservatory in Frankfurt und später mit Arnold Schönberg...
. He was one of the first German Jewish academics to lose his job when Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
came to power in Germany. He died in his native Frankfurt am Main.
Selected compositions
- The Birthday of the Infanta (ballet, 1913, based on an Oscar WildeOscar WildeOscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...
fairy tale) - Scheherazade (opera, 1917)
- Die Hochzeit des Faun (ballet, 1921)
- Die zehn Küsse (opera, 1926)
- Chaconne über ein achttaktiges Marschthema (Chaconne on an Eight-Beat March Theme) for viola and piano, Op.38 (1931)
Students
- Theodor W. AdornoTheodor W. AdornoTheodor W. Adorno was a German sociologist, philosopher, and musicologist known for his critical theory of society....
- Ottmar Gerster
- Hermann Heiß
- Paul HindemithPaul HindemithPaul Hindemith was a German composer, violist, violinist, teacher, music theorist and conductor.- Biography :Born in Hanau, near Frankfurt, Hindemith was taught the violin as a child...
- Anthony van HobokenAnthony van HobokenAnthony van Hoboken was a collector and musicologist. He was born in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, and died in Zürich, Switzerland.Hoboken trained as an engineer in Delft, before studying music in Frankfurt and Vienna...
- Erich Itor KahnErich Itor KahnErich Itor Kahn was a German composer of Jewish descent, who emigrated to the United States during the years of National Socialism.-Biography:...
- Max KowalskiMax KowalskiMax Kowalski was a Polish-German composer, singer and singing teacher.Kowalski's family moved to Germany in 1883, a year after he was born. He studied law in Marburg, obtaining a doctorate and worked as a lawyer in Frankfurt am Main...
- Hans RosbaudHans RosbaudHans Rosbaud , was an Austrian conductor, particularly associated with the music of the twentieth century....
- Max Rudolf
- Cyril ScottCyril ScottCyril Meir Scott was an English composer, writer, and poet.-Biography:Scott was born in Oxton, England to a shipper and scholar of Greek and Hebrew, and Mary Scott , an amateur pianist. He showed a talent for music from an early age and was sent to the Hoch Conservatory in Frankfurt, Germany to...
- Erich SchmidErich SchmidErich Schmid was a Swiss composer and conductor. He was born on January 1, 1907 in Balsthal, Switzerland and died December 17, 2000 in Zürich. He studied composition with Bernhard Sekles at the Hoch Conservatory in Frankfurt und später mit Arnold Schönberg...
- Rudi StephanRudi StephanRudi Stephan , was a German composer of great promise who shortly before the First World War was considered one of the leading talents among his generation....
Literature
- Articles in Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart (Kassel 2006) and New GroveGrove Dictionary of Music and MusiciansThe New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart, it is the largest single reference work on Western music. The dictionary has gone through several editions since the 19th century...
(London 2001) - Peter Cahn: Das Hoch'sche Konservatorium 1878-1978, Frankfurt am Main: Kramer, 1979, pages 257-270, 295-297.
- Joachim Tschiedel: Der "jüdische Scheindirektor" Bernhard Sekles und die Gründung der ersten europäischen Jazz-Klasse 1928, in: mr-Mitteilungen Nr. 20 - September 1996
- Joachim Tschiedel: Bernhard Sekles 1872 - 1934. Leben und Werk des Frankfurter Komponisten und Pädagogen, Schneverdingen 2005
- Theodor W. Adorno: Bernhard Sekles zum 50. Geburtstag, in Gesammelte Schriften Band 18, Frankfurt/Main 1984, S. 269 f.
- Theodor W. Adorno: Minima Moralia, Frankfurt/M. 1951, page 291 ff.
- Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians, (Nicolas Slonimsky, Editor) New York: G. Schirmer, 1958