Wolfgang Schäfer

Wolfgang Schäfer (born 7 April 1945) is a German choral conductor and academic. He founded the Freiburger Vokalensemble, the BosArt Trio, and the Frankfurter Kammerchor.
Career
Born in Staufen im Breisgau, Schäfer studied music education, voice and choral conducting in Freiburg im Breisgau, and orchestral conducting in Stuttgart. He was a teacher at the Hochschule für Musik Freiburg from 1971 to 1982. He has been the artistic director of the , which he founded in 1971.
In 1982 Schäfer was appointed professor for choral conducting at the Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst Frankfurt am Main (short: HfMDK, Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts), succeeding Helmuth Rilling. In that capacity he conducted both the choir and the chamber choir of the Hochschule. He performed concerts with the chamber choir of the MfMDK at the university and also in the Rhein-Main Region, such as 2007 in St. Martin, Idstein, a program of mostly psalm compositions, Das ist mir lieb (Psalm 116) by Heinrich Schütz, Warum ist das Licht gegeben dem Mühseligen? by Brahms, Eli Eli (based on Psalm 22) of Georgius Bárdos, Bruckner's Os justi (Psalm 37:19–20), and Bach's Lobet den Herrn, alle Heiden (Psalm 117). Among his students are Peter Reulein, Christoph Siebert and Dan Zerfaß. In 2008, after 26 years of teaching, he conducted in a farewell concert Schicksalslied of Brahms and Schubert's Mass in A flat major.
Also in 1982 he was the director of the Frankfurter Kantorei, succeeding Kurt Thomas and Rilling. He conducted the choir until 1997. In 2008 he founded the Frankfurter Kammerchor. Schäfer has been a juror at international music competitions. He has been the artistic director of the annual Staufener Musikwoche in his hometown. Since his student days, Schäfer has also been a member of the musical comedy group BosArt Trio.
In 1984 Schäfer conducted the premiere of the Mass of Kurt Hessenberg with the Frankfurter Kantorei in the studio of the Hessischer Rundfunk.
In 1990 he recorded Telemann's cantata Die Tageszeiten with Mechthild Bach, Mechthild Georg, Hans Peter Blochwitz, Johannes Mannov, the Freiburger Vokalensemble and Collegium Musicum, the second commercial recording of the cantata. In 2003 he recorded Telemann's Passion Das selige Erwägen des bittern Leiden und Sterbens Jesu Christi with Barbara Locher, Zeger Vandersteene, Stefan Dörr, Berthold Possemeyer, Jesus-Rene Schmidt, the Freiburger Vokalensemble and L'arpa festante, then probably the only recording of the work.
After retiring from the Musikhochschule Frankfurt, Schäfer founded the Frankfurter Kammerchor, mostly formed by alumni of the Hochschule. He conducted the chamber choir in concerts in the Limburg Cathedral, St. Martin, Idstein, and the Stiftskirche, Stuttgart, among others. He designed a program for Advent which includes several settings of Ave Maria and Jan Sandström's Es ist ein Ros entsprungen.
Awards
1981: BBC competition "Let the Peoples Sing", first prize with the Freiburger Vokalensemble
1984: Wettbewerb der Europäischen Rundfunkunion, first prize with the Freiburger Vokalensemble
Discography
Freiburger Vokalensemble
Anton Bruckner: Motetten. EOM, Freiburg 1980
Das deutsche Chorlied um 1600. Christophorus, Freiburg 1982
Anton Bruckner: Motetten. Christophorus, Freiburg 1984
Hector Berlioz: Lélio. Radio-Sinfonie-Orchester Frankfurt, Eliahu Inbal. Denon, 1987
Georg Philipp Telemann: Die Tageszeiten. BMG Ariola, Hamburg 1990
Cristóbal de Morales: Geistliche Werke. Christophorus, Freiburg 1990
Johannes Brahms: Zigeunerlieder. Sonomaster, Stuttgart 1991
Johannes Brahms: Deutsche Volkslieder. Bayer, Bietigheim-Bissingen 1996
Musik-Dokumente 1970 - 2003 aus der Freiburger Pauluskirche. Notabene, Freiburg 2003
Georg Philipp Telemann: Das selige Erwägen des bittern Leidens und Sterbens Jesu Christi. Sonomaster, Stuttgart 2003
Joseph Rheinberger: Vom Goldenen Horn. Carus, Stuttgart 2005
Conradin Kreutzer: Goethes „Faust“. Gesänge. ARTS
Frankfurter Kantorei
Arthur Honegger: Le Roi David. Christophorus, Freiburg 1985
Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 3. Radio-Sinfonie-Orchester Frankfurt, Eliahu Inbal. Denon, Ratingen 1987
Hector Berlioz: Lélio. Radio-Sinfonie-Orchester Frankfurt, Eliahu Inbal. Denon, 1987
Igor Stravinsky: Les noces; Carl Orff: Catulli carmina. Koch, München 1990
Harald Genzmer: Deutsche Messe. Cappella, Wiesbaden 1993
Antonín Dvořák: Mass in D major. Freiburger Musik-Forum, Freiburg 1993
Joseph Rheinberger: Mass in F minor; Sechs religiöse Gesänge; Requiem in d-Moll. Stuttgart, Carus 1998
Felix Mendelssohn: Die erste Walpurgisnacht. Städtisches Opernhaus- und Museumsorchester, Sylvain Cambreling. Frankfurter Museums-Gesellschaft 2001
BosArt Trio
Unerhörte Meisterwerke. 1984
Ein Schluck aus dem Opernglas. 1987
Scherzo wie Watsche. 1991
Musik von A bis Zett. 1994
Insalata Mista. 1998
Die Fledermaus und das Phantom. 2000
Bach Blüten. 2001
References
External links
Wolfgang Schaefer Frankfurter Kantorei
Wolfgang Schäfer Frankfurter Kammerchor (in German)
BosArt Trio website (in German)
Freiburger Vokalensemble (Chamber Choir) on bach-cantatas
1945 births
Living people
People from Staufen im Breisgau
German choral conductors
German male conductors (music)
Academic staff of the Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts
Academic staff of the Hochschule für Musik Freiburg
21st-century German conductors (music)
21st-century German male musicians