Giselher Klebe


Giselher Wolfgang Klebe was a German composer, and an academic teacher. He composed more than 140 works, among them 14 operas, all based on literary works, eight symphonies, 15 solo concerts, chamber music, piano works, and sacred music.

Biography

Giselher Klebe was born in Mannheim, Germany. He received musical tuition early in his life from his mother, the violinist Gertrud Klebe. The family relocated in 1932 to Munich, where his mother's sister, Melanie Michaelis, continued the training. His father's profession required a further relocation in 1936 to Rostock.
Following the separation of his parents, Klebe moved with his mother and sister to Berlin. During 1938, the 13-year-old sketched his first compositions. In 1940, he began studies in violin, viola, and composition, supported by a grant from the city of Berlin.
After serving his Reichsarbeitsdienst, Klebe was conscripted to military service as signalman. After the German surrender, he was taken prisoner of war by the Russian forces. Due to ill health, he was soon released.
Having convalesced, Klebe continued his music studies in Berlin, first under Joseph Rufer, then in master classes by Boris Blacher. He worked for the radio station Berliner Rundfunk until 1948, when he began to work full-time as a composer.
Klebe was inspired and influenced by works of authors and artists, especially his contemporaries. In 1951 he composed Die Zwitschermaschine Op. 7,, based on the well-known painting by Paul Klee. His first opera, based on Friedrich Schiller's play Die Räuber, was produced in 1957. He composed two operas based on plays by Ödön von Horváth.
In 1957, Klebe succeeded Wolfgang Fortner as docent for the subjects of Composition and Music Theory at the Hochschule für Musik Detmold. He was appointed professor in 1962 and, over the years, taught many students who went on to become well-known composers: Theo Brandmüller,,, Matthias Pintscher, and.

Honors and legacy

On 10 September 1946 Klebe married the violinist Lore Schiller. They had two daughters, Sonja Katharina and Annette Marianne. Lore Klebe wrote the librettos for some of his operas, including Der Jüngste Tag.
Klebe died on 5 October 2009 in Detmold at the age of 84 after a long illness.

Works

OpusTitleTranslationCategory
4Piano sonataPiano sonata
7Die ZwitschermaschineOrchestral
13Wiegenlieder für ChristinchenPiano
22Elegia appassionataPiano trio
25Die RäuberThe RobbersOpera
264 InventionsPiano
27Die tödlichen WünscheThe Deadly WishesOpera
29Cello Concerto No. 1Cello concerto
32Die Ermordung CäsarsThe Murder of CaesarOpera
36AlkmeneOpera
37Adagio and Fugue with a motif from Wagner's Die WalküreOrchestral
399 Duettini per pianoforte e flautoDuo
40Figaro läßt sich scheidenFigaro Gets DivorcedOpera
49Jacobowsky und der OberstJacobovsky and the ColonelOpera
50Concerto a cinqueConcerto
53Symphony No. 3 Symphony
55Das Märchen von der schönen LilieThe Fairy Tale of the Fair LilyOpera
61Das TestamentOrchestral
69Ein wahrer HeldA True HeroOpera
70NeniaChamber music
72Das Mädchen aus DomrémyThe Girl from DomrémyOpera
73OrpheusOrchestral
75Symphony No. 5 Symphony
769 Piano pieces for SonjaPiano
78Das RendezvousOpera
82Der Jüngste TagDoomsdayOpera
87String Quartet No. 3String quartet
90Die FastnachtsbeichteCarnival ConfessionOpera
91FeuersturzPiano
103GlockentürmePiano
111NachklangPiano
119Gervaise MacquartOpera
120Symphony No. 6 Symphony
133MignonViolin concerto
134CharaDuo
149Chlestakows WiederkehrKhlestakov's ReturnOpera