Claus Wisser (born 30 June 1942) is a German entrepreneur and a

patron Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings, popes, and the wealthy have provided to artists su ...

of music and the arts. He was head of the service company Wisag which he founded, and has been chairman of its supervisory board since 2011. He is also known for being a founding member of the

Rheingau Musik Festival The (RMF) is an international summer music festival in Germany, founded in 1987. It is mostly for classical music, but includes other genres. Concerts take place at culturally important locations, such as Eberbach Abbey and Schloss Johannisberg, ...

, and chairman of its supporting association. He was twice a member of the

Federal Convention The Constitutional Convention took place in Philadelphia from May 25 to September 17, 1787. Although the convention was intended to revise the league of states and first system of government under the Articles of Confederation, the intention fr ...

to elect the German President.

Career

Wisser was born in

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

, the son of a shopkeeper. He attended the . When he was 14, his father had to close the shop, and the boy took several jobs during his time at the gymnasium. While still at school, he joined the

SPD The Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, ; SPD, ) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been t ...

. He studied

business administration Business administration, also known as business management, is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. From the point of view of management ...

at the University of Frankfurt, and took part in the beginning ''Studentenrevolte'', opposing the

German Emergency Acts The German Emergency Acts (') were passed on 30 May 1968 at the time of the ''Grand coalition, First Grand Coalition'' between the Social Democratic Party of Germany and the Christian Democratic Union of Germany. It was the 17th constitutional amen ...

. He heard Carlo Schmid in public lectures at the university. In 1965, Wisser founded a company for the cleaning of office buildings, dropping out of the university. He led it from small beginnings to , a concern for cleaning, maintenance of parks, security, and catering, among others. He describes the services as for industry, administration, airlines, and airports, especially the traffic on the ground for the latter. In 2011, he passed on his position as chairman of the board to his son Michael Wisser, and has been chairman of the supervisory board since. In 1987, he was one of the founding members of the

, together with

Michael Herrmann Michael Herrmann (born 4 February 1944, in Wiesbaden) is a German culture and music administrator. He founded the Rheingau Musik Festival in 1987 and is its Artistic Director and Chief Executive Officer. He also runs a concert agency in the Frank ...

, Tatiana von Metternich-Winneburg, Michael Bolenius, Hans-Clemens Lucht, and Ulrich Rosin. He succeeded

Walter Fink Walter Fink (16 August 1930 – 13 April 2018) was a German entrepreneur and a patron of contemporary classical music. He is known for being a founding member, executive committee member and sponsor of the Rheingau Musik Festival, where he initia ...

as chairman of the Rheingau Musik Festival Förderverein, an association to support the festival. Honoring his 60th birthday on 30 June 2002, the festival staged a performance of Carl Orff's at

Eberbach Abbey Eberbach Abbey (German: Kloster Eberbach) is a former Cistercian monastery in Eltville in the Rheingau, Germany. On account of its Romanesque and early Gothic buildings it is considered one of the most significant architectural heritage sites in ...

, with soloists

Annette Dasch Annette Dasch (born 24 March 1976) is a German soprano. She performs in operas and concerts. Biography Born in West Berlin, Annette Dasch studied voice at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater München with Josef Loibl. She made her debut a ...

, Gert Henning-Jensen, and Željko Lučić, the choir Orfeón Donostiarra, and the

hr-Sinfonieorchester The Frankfurt Radio Symphony (german: hr-Sinfonieorchester) is the radio orchestra of Hessischer Rundfunk, the public broadcasting network of the German state of Hesse. From 1929 to 1950 it was named ''Frankfurter Rundfunk-Symphonie-Orchester''. ...

conducted by

Hugh Wolff Hugh MacPherson Wolff (born October 21, 1953, Neuilly-sur-Seine, France) is an American conductor. Biography Born in France while his father was serving in the U.S. Foreign Service, Wolff spent his primary-school years in London. He received his ...

, which was recorded. Wisser has also sponsored the

Städel The Städel, officially the ''Städelsches Kunstinstitut und Städtische Galerie'', is an art museum in Frankfurt, with one of the most important collections in Germany. The Städel Museum owns 3,100 paintings, 660 sculptures, more than 4,600 ...

museum and the

Caricatura Museum Frankfurt The Caricatura Museum, official name Caricatura Museum für Komische Kunst, is a museum for comic art in Frankfurt, Hesse, Germany. It shows a in a permanent exhibition works by the artists of the Neue Frankfurter Schule, and additionally exhi ...

, and the University of Frankfurt. He began a project to transform the former Johannisberg Abbey into a hotel and event location. Wisser was a member of the

for the election of the German Bundespräsident, in 1999 and in 2017.

Awards

* 2005: * 2013: * 2015: ULI Leadership Award

References

External links

WISAG

Claus Wisser: Alle Nachrichten und Informationen der F.A.Z. zum Thema
FAZ * Katja Gußmann
Folge 67: Firmengründer Claus Wisser Der rote Faden: So isser, der Wisser

Frankfurter Neue Presse The ''Frankfurter Neue Presse'' (FNP) is a German daily newspaper, based in Frankfurt am Main and focused on local and regional topics. History The FNP was founded on 15 April 1946 under a license of the American military government. It was lic ...

, 12 April 2014 * Thorsten Müller
Mit Inspiration und Transpiration zu Nachhaltigkeit und Effizienz
Handel und Immobilien, 7 October 2016 {{DEFAULTSORT:Wisser, Claus 1942 births Living people 20th-century German businesspeople 21st-century German businesspeople Businesspeople from Frankfurt German patrons of music German social democrats German company founders