Clemens Hellsberg (8746894367) (cropped)

Clemens Hellsberg (born 28 March 1952) is an Austrian

violinist The following lists of violinists are available: * List of classical violinists, notable violinists from the baroque era onwards * List of contemporary classical violinists, notable contemporary classical violinists * List of violinist/compose ...

and from 1997 to 2014 was director of the Wiener Philharmoniker.

Life

Born in Linz, after attending the Schottengymnasium in Vienna, Hellsberg studied

musicology Musicology (from Greek μουσική ''mousikē'' 'music' and -λογια ''-logia'', 'domain of study') is the scholarly analysis and research-based study of music. Musicology departments traditionally belong to the humanities, although some m ...

and ancient history at the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich hi ...

, where he received his doctorate in 1980. At the same time he studied violin at the

University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna The University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna (german: link=no, Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien, abbreviated MDW) is an Austrian university located in Vienna, established in 1817. With a student body of over three thous ...

. He was a special forces soldier, a member of the Jagdkommando with the

Bundesheer The Austrian Armed Forces (german: Bundesheer, lit=Federal Army) are the combined military forces of the Republic of Austria. The military consists of 22,050 active-duty personnel and 125,600 reservists. The military budget is 0.74% of natio ...

. In 1976 he was employed by the orchestra of the

Vienna State Opera The Vienna State Opera (, ) is an opera house and opera company based in Vienna, Austria. The 1,709-seat Renaissance Revival venue was the first major building on the Vienna Ring Road. It was built from 1861 to 1869 following plans by August ...

, and from 1978 played as first violinist in the orchestra of the same opera house. The Philharmonic recorded him in 1980. From 1997 to 2014 he succeeded Werner Resel on the board of directors. In September 2014, Andreas Großbauer succeeded him in this function. In 2016 he went into retirement. Hellsberg also gained fame through his book ''Democracy of the Kings'', published in 1992. The

Austrian Green party Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example ...

published this history of the Vienna Philharmonic because of what they saw as omissions, from the official narrative, of elements of

Nazism Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) i ...

in the past of the Vienna Philharmonic. He has been a member of the Catholic student fraternity of the since 1974.

Publications

* 1992: ''Demokratie der Könige: Die Geschichte der Wiener Philharmoniker''. Musikverlag Schott, Mainz 1992, * 2015: ''Philharmonische Begegnungen 1: Die Welt der Wiener Philharmoniker als Mosaik''. Braumüller Verlag, Vienna 2015, * 2016: ''Philharmonische Begegnungen 2: Die Welt der Wiener Philharmoniker als Mosaik''. Braumüller Verlag, Vienna 2016,

Honours

* 1999:

Komtur Commander ( it, Commendatore; french: Commandeur; german: Komtur; es, Comendador; pt, Comendador), or Knight Commander, is a title of honor prevalent in chivalric orders and fraternal orders. The title of Commander occurred in the medieval mili ...

des Order of St. Gregory the Great. * 2002: Berufstitel Professor * 2011: . * 2012: Marietta and Friedrich Torberg Medal of the

Israelitische Kultusgemeinde Wien The Jewish Community of Vienna (Israelitische Kultusgemeinde Wien or IKG) is the body that represents Vienna's Orthodox Jewish community. Today, the IKG has around 10 000 members. Throughout history, it has represented almost all of Austria's Jew ...

. * 2013: . * 2014:

Order of the Rising Sun The is a Japanese order, established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji. The Order was the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese government, created on 10 April 1875 by decree of the Council of State. The badge features rays of sunlight f ...

. * 2014: Order pro ''Merito Melitensi''. * 2015: Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et Lettres.''Überreichung der Insignen eines Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et Lettres an Clemens Hellsberg''
Article published on 1 July 2015, retrieved on 27 October 2019.

External links

*
Interview with Clemens Hellsberg

Clemens Hellsberg auf der Website der Wiener Philharmoniker

Discography
on ALLMUSIC *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hellsberg, Clemens Austrian classical violinists Players of the Vienna Philharmonic Knights Commander of the Order of St Gregory the Great Marietta and Friedrich Torberg Medal recipients Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun Chevaliers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres University of Vienna alumni 1952 births Living people Musicians from Linz Cartellverband members