Hans Albert Oskar Stieber (1 March 1886 – 18 October 1969) was a German conductor, composer and violinist. He was the founding director of the Hochschule für Theater und Musik in

Halle an der Saale Halle (Saale), or simply Halle (; from the 15th to the 17th century: ''Hall in Sachsen''; until the beginning of the 20th century: ''Halle an der Saale'' ; from 1965 to 1995: ''Halle/Saale'') is the largest city of the German state of Saxony-Anh ...

Life

Origin and family

Stieber was born in

Naumburg an der Saale Naumburg () is a town in (and the administrative capital of) the district Burgenlandkreis, in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, Central Germany (cultural area), Central Germany. It has a population of around 33,000. The Naumburg Cathedral became a UNES ...

in the Prussian

Province of Saxony The Province of Saxony (german: link=no, Provinz Sachsen), also known as Prussian Saxony () was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and later the Free State of Prussia from 1816 until 1944. Its capital was Magdeburg. It was formed by the merge ...

as the eldest of four sons of the lawyer Paul Stieber (1856–1944) and his wife Elsbeth (Else) (1861–1940), ''née'' Biermann. His maternal great-grandmother Friederike Komitsch, ''née'' Schaffner, was an actress at the

Schauspielhaus Berlin The Konzerthaus Berlin is a concert hall in Berlin, the home of the Konzerthausorchester Berlin. Situated on the Gendarmenmarkt square in the central Mitte district of the city, it was originally built as a theater. It initially operated from ...

and married the actor

Ludwig Devrient Ludwig Devrient (15 December 178430 December 1832) was a German actor, noted for his playing in the works of Shakespeare and Schiller. Devrient, who was born in Berlin, left a commercial career for the stage in 1804. He joined a travelling theatr ...

in her first marriage. His grandfather was the jurist

Wilhelm Stieber Wilhelm Johann Carl Eduard Stieber (3 May 1818 – 29 January 1882) was Otto von Bismarck's master spy and director of the Prussian Feldgendarmerie. Stieber was both an agent of domestic surveillance and an external agent. Along with Joseph Fouch ...

and worked as a police director, privy councillor and head of the ''Central-Nachrichten-Bureaus'' at the in Berlin. His father made it to the 1st director of the Norddeutsche 's pension fund in Halle an der Saale. He also made a name for himself as the founder of a sanatorium. He too was the business manager of the Luther Festival and organised the mountain concerts in Halle. Stieber's brother

Paul Devrient Paul Devrient, real name Walter Stieber, also Paul Stieber-Walter (17 November 1890 – 5 November 1973) was a German operatic tenor and theatre director. He was considered a renowned Verdi and Mozart interpreter. He also gained notoriety as Ado ...

(1890–1973) was an opera and concert singer (tenor), especially a sought-after

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...

and

Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...

-interpreter. He was of

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

confession and in 1920 married to Gretel Elisabeth, ''née'' Runge, who came from

East Frisia East Frisia or East Friesland (german: Ostfriesland; ; stq, Aastfräislound) is a historic region in the northwest of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is primarily located on the western half of the East Frisian peninsula, to the east of West Frisia ...

School years and music studies

Stieber attended the . As a pupil he was enthusiastic about

puppetry Puppetry is a form of theatre or performance that involves the manipulation of puppets – inanimate objects, often resembling some type of human or animal figure, that are animated or manipulated by a human called a puppeteer. Such a perform ...

, and at the same time he received piano lessons from his father who was interested in music. His musical interest culminated in 1904 in the recording of a study of music at the

University of Music and Theatre Leipzig The University of Music and Theatre "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" Leipzig (german: Hochschule für Musik und Theater "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" Leipzig) is a public university in Leipzig (Saxony, Germany). Founded in 1843 by Felix Mendelssohn ...

. He studied violin with the former concertmaster of the

Gewandhausorchester The Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra (Gewandhausorchester; also previously known in German as the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig) is a German symphony orchestra based in Leipzig, Germany. The orchestra is named after the concert hall in which it is bas ...

Arno Hilf Franz Arno Hilf (14 March 1858 – 2 August 1909) was a German violin virtuoso. Among others, he was Konzertmeister of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra and primarius of the Gewandhaus Quartet. Life Hilf came from a family of musicians. He was b ...

and

conducting Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance, such as an orchestral or choral concert. It has been defined as "the art of directing the simultaneous performance of several players or singers by the use of gesture." The primary duti ...

with the Gewandhaus

Kapellmeister (, also , ) from German ''Kapelle'' (chapel) and ''Meister'' (master)'','' literally "master of the chapel choir" designates the leader of an ensemble of musicians. Originally used to refer to somebody in charge of music in a chapel, the term ha ...

Arthur Nikisch Arthur Nikisch (12 October 185523 January 1922) was a Hungarian conductor who performed internationally, holding posts in Boston, London, Leipzig and—most importantly—Berlin. He was considered an outstanding interpreter of the music of Br ...

Stephan Krehl __NOTOC__ Stephan Krehl (5 July 1864 – 9 April 1924, in Leipzig) was a German composer, teacher, and theoretician. His writings include ''Traité général de la musique'' and ''Théorie de la musique et de science de la composition.'' His pupil ...

(

music theory Music theory is the study of the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory". The first is the "rudiments", that are needed to understand music notation (ke ...

) and

Heinrich Zöllner Heinrich Zöllner (4 July 1854 – 8 May 1941) was a German composer and conductor. Biography The son of composer Carl Friedrich Zöllner, Heinrich Zöllner was born in Leipzig. From 1875 to 1877 he attended the Leipzig Conservatory where he s ...

(

musical composition Musical composition can refer to an original piece or work of music, either vocal or instrumental, the structure of a musical piece or to the process of creating or writing a new piece of music. People who create new compositions are called ...

). From 1906 to 1908 he continued his studies probably for health reasons at the Princely Conservatory

Sondershausen Sondershausen is a town in Thuringia, central Germany, capital of the Kyffhäuserkreis district, situated about 50 km north of Erfurt. On 1 December 2007, the former municipality Schernberg was incorporated by Sondershausen. Until 1918 it ...

Schwarzburg-Sondershausen Schwarzburg-Sondershausen was a small principality in Germany, in the present day state of Thuringia, with its capital at Sondershausen. History Schwarzburg-Sondershausen was a county until 1697. In that year, it became a principality, which ...

. There he was decisively supported by , the director of the institute. In 1909 he passed his examinations in public. He played the viola in Dvořák's 14th string quartet, conducted an aria from Mendelssohn's oratorium '' Elija'' and participated as soloist in the Violin Concerto in E minor of the composer.Klaus Schneider: ''Hans Stieber. Lebensdaten, Werkverzeichnis, Bibliographie''. In ', NF 26 (1972) 3/4, , hier: .

Stages as conductor

From 1908 he was first violinist in the

Loh-Orchester Sondershausen The Loh-Orchester Sondershausen is an orchestra from Sondershausen founded around 1600. It influenced Music in Germany in the 19th century by helping the music of Richard Wagner and Franz Liszt to achieve a breakthrough. Since 1991, the Loh-Orch ...

. In 1910 he became 2nd violinist of the in

Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt (german: Sachsen-Anhalt ; nds, Sassen-Anholt) is a state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.18 million inhabitants, making it the ...

répétiteur A (from the French verb meaning 'to repeat, to go over, to learn, to rehearse') is an accompanist, tutor or coach of ballet dancers or opera singers. A feminine form, , also appears but is comparatively rare. Opera In opera, a is the person ...

and choir director at the court theatre. In the summer months he was a violinist at the (Bavaria) and Bad Elster (Saxony).Klaus Schneider: ''Hans Stieber. Lebensdaten, Werkverzeichnis, Bibliographie''. In ''Hannoversche Geschichtsblätter'', NF 26 (1972) 3/4, , hier: . Afterwards, he worked at various German houses: He was opera conductor and concert conductor at the

Theater Koblenz The Theater Koblenz is a multi-arts theatre with its own ensembles for drama, music theatre, puppetry and ballet located in Koblenz, Germany. It has about 190 permanent employees from 22 nations and offers 500 seats in a theatre building from the ...

(1916) and at the Munich Chamber Opera (1917). At the

Opernhaus Kiel Opernhaus Kiel (Kiel Opera House) is the major venue for opera, ballet, and orchestral performances in Kiel, and home to Theater Kiel. It is a Grade II listed building. History After an architectural competition, the Kiel City Council commi ...

, where he worked from 1917 to 1920, he was responsible for the new production of Cherubini's opera ''Der Wasserträger'' with recitatives composed by himself. In 1920 he became symphony concert conductor of the Staatskapelle Halle orchestra. He opened the dress rehearsals of the orchestra for the free attendance of school classes. The

premiere A première, also spelled premiere, is the debut (first public presentation) of a play, film, dance, or musical composition. A work will often have many premières: a world première (the first time it is shown anywhere in the world), its first ...

of his first opera ''Der Sonnenstürmer'' in Chemnitz in 1921 was a great success. His brother also sang in this opera. In the 1920s and 1930s he composed numerous stage and choral works which were premiered in Hanover, Essen, Bremen, Vienna, Leipzig and Breslau. In 1928, the

Gewandhaus Quartet The Gewandhaus Quartet (German: Gewandhaus-Quartett) is a string quartet based in Leipzig. It was founded in 1808 by members of the Gewandhaus Orchester, as one of the first professional quartets in the world. In its more than 200-year history, t ...

premiered his

string quartet The term string quartet can refer to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two violinists ...

F Major F major (or the key of F) is a major scale based on F, with the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative minor is D minor and its parallel minor is F minor F minor is a minor scale based on F, consis ...

.Gert Richter: ''Katalog zu den Sammlungen des Händel-Hauses in Halle''. Part 9: ''Nachlässe und Teilnachlässe''. Part: H. 1: ''Teilnachlass Hans Stieber''. Händel-Haus, Halle an der Saale 1986, . From 1922 he worked as a freelancer in Hanover for 15 years: Until 1938 he led the ''Hannoverschen Männer-Gesangs-Verein''. 1923 he made his debut in the cupola hall of the . As a concert conductor he interpreted a.o. Liszts'

Faust Symphony ''A Faust Symphony in three character pictures'' (german: Eine Faust-Symphonie in drei Charakterbildern), S.108, or simply the "''Faust Symphony''", is a choral symphony written by Hungarian composer Franz Liszt inspired by Johann Wolfgang von Go ...

, Bruckner's Symphony No. 5 and Mahler's Symphony No. 2 ("Resurrection Symphony"). In 1924 In 1924 with the Männerchor and the Hannoversche Konzertchor founded by him, the later Singakademie, he performed Pfitzner's romantic cantata ' to the Hanover premiere.

Activity at the Leipzig Opera House

In 1938, Stieber got a position as dramaturge, musical advisor and conductor at the

Leipzig Opera The Leipzig Opera (in German: ) is an opera house and opera company located at the Augustusplatz and the Inner City Ring Road at its east side in Leipzig's district Mitte, Germany. History Performances of opera in Leipzig trace back to Singspi ...

. He was also responsible for the composition of stage and acting music, such as ''Gutenberg in Mainz'', ''Der Schauspieldirektor'', ''Der Mumanz'' and ''Madame Devrient''. Stieber became further successor of Gustav Wohlgemuth in the . 1941 he reorganized the and became its

music director A music(al) director or director of music is the person responsible for the musical aspects of a performance, production, or organization. This would include the artistic director and usually chief conductor of an orchestra or concert band, the d ...

.Klaus Schneider: ''Hans Stieber. Lebensdaten, Werkverzeichnis, Bibliographie''. In ''Hannoversche Geschichtsblätter'', NF 26 (1972) 3/4, , here p. 202f. During his Leipzig years he also composed symphonic works and

cantata A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir. The meaning of ...

s, which were performed under the direction of

Hermann Abendroth Hermann Paul Maximilian Abendroth (19 January 1883 – 29 May 1956) was a German conductor. Early life Abendroth was born on 19 January 1883, at Frankfurt, the son of a bookseller. Several other members of the family were artists in diverse dis ...

and at the

Gewandhaus Gewandhaus is a concert hall in Leipzig, the home of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. Today's hall is the third to bear this name; like the second, it is noted for its fine acoustics. History The first Gewandhaus (''Altes Gewandhaus'') The fi ...

. The world premiere of his opera ''Der Dombaumeister'' took place in 1942 at the

Wrocław Opera The Wrocław Opera ( Polish: ''Opera Wrocławska'') is an opera company and opera house in the Old Town of Wrocław Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in t ...

. Stieber was not a party member. He belonged to the circle of friends of the Leipzig mayor and resistance fighter

Carl Friedrich Goerdeler Carl Friedrich Goerdeler (; 31 July 1884 – 2 February 1945) was a monarchist conservative German politician, executive, economist, civil servant and opponent of the Nazi regime. He opposed some anti-Jewish policies while he held office and was ...

.Klaus Schneider: ''Hans Stieber. Lebensdaten, Werkverzeichnis, Bibliographie''. In ''Hannoversche Geschichtsblätter'', NF 26 (1972) 3/4, , hier: p. 203. He saw himself as a late Romantic. According to Gert Richter (1986), "bourgeois Christian-humanistic traditions" shaped his activity. Stieber's works are "supported by high moral norms". He "did not allow himself to be corrupted by the National Socialist idea or to be pressured into his ethos".Gert Richter: ''Katalog zu den Sammlungen des Händel-Hauses in Halle''. Part 9: ''Nachlässe und Teilnachlässe''. Part: H. 1: ''Teilnachlass Hans Stieber''. Händel-Haus, Halle an der Saale 1986, . In

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

, Stieber set jubilant National Socialist texts to music.

Founding director of the Musikhochschule Halle

In June 1946, commissioned by the

Soviet Military Administration in Germany The Soviet Military Administration in Germany (russian: Советская военная администрация в Германии, СВАГ; ''Sovyetskaya Voyennaya Administratsiya v Germanii'', SVAG; german: Sowjetische Militäradministrat ...

, gründete er 1947Gert Richter: ''Katalog zu den Sammlungen des Händel-Hauses in Halle''. Part 9: ''Nachlässe und Teilnachlässe''. Part: H. 1: ''Teilnachlass Hans Stieber''. Händel-Haus, Halle an der Saale 1986, . among others together with

Max Schneider Maxwell George Schneider (born June 21, 1992), also known by his mononym MAX, is an American singer-songwriter, actor and model, signed to Arista and Sony RED. In 2018, MAX's single " Lights Down Low" went double platinum in the US, Platinum i ...

Walther Davisson Walther Davisson (15 December 1885 – 18 July 1973) was a German violinist and conductor. Background Davisson was born in Frankfurt am Main. He studied in Frankfurt at the Hoch Conservatory from 1900 to 1906 with Johann Naret-Koning and ...

, Bronisław von Poźniak and Sigfrid Grundeis the ''Hochschule für Theater und Musik'' in Halle, which he headed until 1938. From 1948 to 1955 he was professor and director of the

master class A master class is a Class (education), class given to students of a particular Academic discipline, discipline by an expert of that discipline—usually music, but also science, painting, drama, games, or on any other occasion where skills are b ...

es for

and opera dramaturgy. After the transformation of the school into a music institute in 1955, he became

emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

, but continued to work at the institute as a member of the senate and head of department for composition and theory. His students included among others Fritz Ihlau and Manfred Weiss. In addition he rebuilt the Singakademie in Halle as musical director from 1948 to 1953. Guest conductors have taken him to Prague, Frankfurt am Main, Lübeck, Hanover and Leipzig. He rejected an invitation to the 1951 Music Olympiad in Salzburg. In 1952 he took part in the 1st International Music Congress as a guest of the

Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde The Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in Wien (), also known as the Wiener Musikverein (German for 'Viennese Music Association'), is an Austrian music organization that was founded in 1812 by Joseph Sonnleithner, general secretary of the Court Theat ...

in Vienna. He became a juror at the Society's soloist competition. The ''Niederrheinische Chormusikfest'' in Mönchen-Gladbach appointed him to its honorary committee. Stieber was also a member of the ''Richard-Strauss-Gesellschaft'' and the

Gesellschaft für Musikforschung The ''Gesellschaft für Musikforschung'' (GfM) is a professional association of musicologists and institutes active in study, research and teaching in Germany. It has over 1600 members. The association is based in Kassel, Hesse. History The soc ...

. On behalf of the Leipzig Musikhochschule he carried out music-dramaturgical research on contemporary opera works. He was also active in the Commission for Music Theatre in the , for which he also prepared expert opinions. Stieber was an honorary member of the

International Association of Wagner Societies The International Association of Wagner Societies (''Der Richard-Wagner-Verband International e.V.'', also known as "Der RWVI") is an affiliation of Wagner societies (''Richard Wagner-Verband'') that promotes interest and research into the works of ...

and the ''Hannoverschen Männer-Gesangs-Vereins''.Gert Richter: ''Katalog zu den Sammlungen des Händel-Hauses in Halle''. Part 9: ''Nachlässe und Teilnachlässe''. Part: H. 1: ''Teilnachlass Hans Stieber''. Händel-Haus, Halle an der Saale 1986, . He was also a fruitful composer. He dedicated his ''Zwiegespräch'' for violin and viola (1965) to the Soviet violin virtuoso

David Oistrakh David Fyodorovich Oistrakh (; – 24 October 1974), was a Soviet classical violinist, violist and conductor. Oistrakh collaborated with major orchestras and musicians from many parts of the world and was the dedicatee of numerous violin w ...

, who received the score personally during a concert in Halle. He composed his Violin Concerto in D Major for

Saschko Gawriloff Saschko Gawriloff (born October 20, 1929) is a German violinist and violin teacher of Bulgarian descent. Life Gawriloff was born in Leipzig and received his first violin lessons from his father Yordan Gavriloff, who was a violinist in the Leipz ...

Ernst Barlach Ernst Heinrich Barlach (2 January 1870 – 24 October 1938) was a German expressionist sculptor, medallist, printmaker and writer. Although he was a supporter of the war in the years leading to World War I, his participation in the war made him c ...

. So he became a member of the and of the Barlach-Arbeitskreis of the

Cultural Association of the GDR The Cultural Association of the GDR (german: Kulturbund der DDR, KB) was a federation of local clubs in the German Democratic Republic (GDR). It formed part of the Socialist Unity Party-led National Front, and sent representatives to the Volksk ...

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

in Halle at the age of 83.

Work

Stieber's works are stored in the ''Stieber Archive'' of the and as partially indexed

Nachlass ''Nachlass'' (, older spelling ''Nachlaß'') is a German word, used in academia to describe the collection of manuscripts, notes, correspondence, and so on left behind when a scholar dies. The word is a compound in German: ''nach'' means "after" ...

(edited by Gert Richter)Archivbestände in der Bibliothek der Stiftung Händel-Haus
haendelhaus.de, retrieved on 25 May 2019. in the library of the foundation

Handel House Handel House (German: ''Händel-Haus'') is a cultural site in Halle in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. The composer George Frideric Handel was born here in 1685; it is now a museum, and houses a collection relating to the composer and to the musical hi ...

of the city of Halle. To his body of compositions belong music-dramaturgical works such as

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

chamber opera Chamber opera is a designation for operas written to be performed with a chamber ensemble rather than a full orchestra. Early 20th-century operas of this type include Paul Hindemith's ''Cardillac'' (1926). Earlier small-scale operas such as Pergoles ...

s und

Singspiel A Singspiel (; plural: ; ) is a form of German-language music drama, now regarded as a genre of opera. It is characterized by spoken dialogue, which is alternated with ensembles, songs, ballads, and arias which were often strophic, or folk-like ...

vocal music Vocal music is a type of singing performed by one or more singers, either with musical instruments, instrumental accompaniment, or without instrumental accompaniment (a cappella), in which singing provides the main focus of the piece. Music which ...

, including

choral music A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...

, as well as orchestral and instrumental

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small numb ...

pieces. He was also the author of several stage plays.

Prizes

* 1961: Art Prize of the City of Halle (on the occasion of his 1000-year anniversary). * 1965:

Handel Prize The Handel Prize (german: Händel-Preis) is an annual award, instituted in 1956, which is presented by the city of Halle, in Germany, in honour of the celebrated Baroque composer George Frideric Handel. It is awarded, "for exceptional artistic, ...

presented by the city of Halle.

Hans Stieber Prize

Within the framework of the Hallische Musiktage, the "Hans Stieber Prize" was awarded posthumously from 1977 onwards at the suggestion of the Association of Composers and Musicologists of the GDR.

References

External links

* *
Stieber Hans
on Munich University
Stieber Hans
on Kalliope

beim Landesverband Sachsen-Anhalt Deutscher Komponisten e. V. {{DEFAULTSORT:Stieber, Hans 20th-century classical composers German composers German choral conductors German classical violists 1886 births 1969 deaths People from Naumburg (Saale) Handel Prize winners 20th-century violists