Ludwig Lenel
Encyclopedia
Ludwig Lenel was an organist and composer
.
(1824–1884), who emigrated to the USA, but returned later and became a national-liberal deputy to the German Reichstag and a friend of Bismarck
. His youngest son Wolfgang, a great-uncle of Lenel, was leader in the coup d'état in 1920.
Since 1918, the Lenels had lived in various places, one among them being Heidelberg. Lenel's father was a lecturer for Italian medieval history, his uncle the famous industrialist Richard Lenel
. He was made an honorary professor without remuneration of the university in 1932, but was forced out of it a year later because he was Jewish. In August 1933, he lost his license to teach. He died in 1937 in Heidelberg.
Lenel, who was half-Jewish, was the last of his family to leave Germany in 1939 to relatives in the USA.
, who usually stayed with his family when he was visiting Heidelberg. Upon matriculating in 1932, Lenel received an invitation to take organ lessons at Schweitzer's hometown of Gunsbach/Alsace. Already earlier on, Lenel wrote a concerto for saxophone and orchestra. In 1933, his concert for two violins and string orchestra was initially performed at the Collegium Musicum of Heidelberg. Lenel then proceeded to study music for three years in Cologne and another three years in Basle. The organ remained his main focus, though.
After emigrating to the USA, Lenel worked as an organist and continued his studies in music composing at Oberlin College
(Ohio
/USA). After living in Illinois
, Pennsylvania
and New York City
, he eventually settled at Muhlenberg College
in Allentown, (Pennsylvania), where he taught for 27 years – until 1979 – as a professor of music. He conducted the College Choir, with whom he also went on tour, initiated a series of concerts, and founded the Department of Opera. In 1989, he received an honorary doctorate from Muhlenberg College.
On November 9, 1998, Lenel returned to Heidelberg to attend the performance of his main oeuvre, Death and Atonement, for narrator, violin, oboe, brass, piano and drums, in memory of the Holocaust. The 20-minute-long concerto, written between 1976 and 1992, is based on Paul Celan
's poem Todesfuge and texts by Nelly Sachs
. Composer Wolfgang Fortner
mentions Lenel, besides René Frank, Laurence Feininger, and others, as witnesses and examples of his teaching Jewish students before and during World War II in the attachment of his "Story of Life" in his de-Nazifiying file (Generallandesarchiv Karlsruhe).
Lenel died in 2002 in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
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...
.
Family
The grandfather on the mother's side of Ludwig Lenel was the Prussian democrat Friedrich KappFriedrich Kapp
Friedrich Kapp was a German-American lawyer, writer, and politician. He was an outspoken opponent of Germany's colonization fervor during his time as a National Liberal Reichstag deputy. This was exemplified in his speech to the annual Congress of German Economists...
(1824–1884), who emigrated to the USA, but returned later and became a national-liberal deputy to the German Reichstag and a friend of Bismarck
Otto von Bismarck
Otto Eduard Leopold, Prince of Bismarck, Duke of Lauenburg , simply known as Otto von Bismarck, was a Prussian-German statesman whose actions unified Germany, made it a major player in world affairs, and created a balance of power that kept Europe at peace after 1871.As Minister President of...
. His youngest son Wolfgang, a great-uncle of Lenel, was leader in the coup d'état in 1920.
Since 1918, the Lenels had lived in various places, one among them being Heidelberg. Lenel's father was a lecturer for Italian medieval history, his uncle the famous industrialist Richard Lenel
Richard Lenel
Richard Lenel was chairman of the chamber of commerce and honorary citizen of the city of Mannheim, Germany.- Biography :...
. He was made an honorary professor without remuneration of the university in 1932, but was forced out of it a year later because he was Jewish. In August 1933, he lost his license to teach. He died in 1937 in Heidelberg.
Lenel, who was half-Jewish, was the last of his family to leave Germany in 1939 to relatives in the USA.
Life
Lenel was strongly influenced by his meeting Albert SchweitzerAlbert Schweitzer
Albert Schweitzer OM was a German theologian, organist, philosopher, physician, and medical missionary. He was born in Kaysersberg in the province of Alsace-Lorraine, at that time part of the German Empire...
, who usually stayed with his family when he was visiting Heidelberg. Upon matriculating in 1932, Lenel received an invitation to take organ lessons at Schweitzer's hometown of Gunsbach/Alsace. Already earlier on, Lenel wrote a concerto for saxophone and orchestra. In 1933, his concert for two violins and string orchestra was initially performed at the Collegium Musicum of Heidelberg. Lenel then proceeded to study music for three years in Cologne and another three years in Basle. The organ remained his main focus, though.
After emigrating to the USA, Lenel worked as an organist and continued his studies in music composing at Oberlin College
Oberlin College
Oberlin College is a private liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio, noteworthy for having been the first American institution of higher learning to regularly admit female and black students. Connected to the college is the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, the oldest continuously operating...
(Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
/USA). After living in Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
and New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, he eventually settled at Muhlenberg College
Muhlenberg College
Muhlenberg College is a private liberal arts college located in Allentown, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1848, Muhlenberg is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and is named for Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, the patriarch of the Lutheran Church in America.- History...
in Allentown, (Pennsylvania), where he taught for 27 years – until 1979 – as a professor of music. He conducted the College Choir, with whom he also went on tour, initiated a series of concerts, and founded the Department of Opera. In 1989, he received an honorary doctorate from Muhlenberg College.
On November 9, 1998, Lenel returned to Heidelberg to attend the performance of his main oeuvre, Death and Atonement, for narrator, violin, oboe, brass, piano and drums, in memory of the Holocaust. The 20-minute-long concerto, written between 1976 and 1992, is based on Paul Celan
Paul Celan
Paul Celan was a poet and translator...
's poem Todesfuge and texts by Nelly Sachs
Nelly Sachs
Nelly Sachs was a Jewish German poet and playwright whose experiences resulting from the rise of the Nazis in World War II Europe transformed her into a poignant spokeswoman for the grief and yearnings of her fellow Jews...
. Composer Wolfgang Fortner
Wolfgang Fortner
Wolfgang Fortner was a German composer, composition teacher and conductor.-Life:Fortner was born in Leipzig. From his parents - both singers - Fortner very early on had intense contact with music...
mentions Lenel, besides René Frank, Laurence Feininger, and others, as witnesses and examples of his teaching Jewish students before and during World War II in the attachment of his "Story of Life" in his de-Nazifiying file (Generallandesarchiv Karlsruhe).
Lenel died in 2002 in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Literature
- Anderson, E. Ruth. Contemporary American composers. A biographical dictionary, Second edition, G. K. Hall, 1982.
- Borroff, Edith; Clark, J. Bunker. American opera. A checklist, Harmonie Park Press, 1992.
Sources
- Rhein-Neckar-Zeitung Heidelberg 4. und 9. November 1998.
- Givannini/Moraw (Ed.). Erinnertes Leben – Autobiographische Texte zur jüdischen Geschichte Heidelbergs, Heidelberg 1998.