Music at the University of Leipzig
The University of Leipzig stands in a rich tradition of music history. Names like Werner Fabricius, the first 'Director musices Paulini' (1656-79), Johann Schelle (1679-1701), Johann Kuhnau (1701-22), Johann Adam Hiller (1778-85) and Max Reger (1907-8) are part of the centuries-old tradition of music at the Leipzig University. Among the alumni of the University of Leipzig are Georg Philipp Telemann, Carl Philipp Emmanuel Bach, Robert Schumann and Richard Wagner. In 1836, Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University. The Leipzig premiere of Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy's oratorio 'St Paul' took place in the University Church of St Paul on 16 March 1837 under the direction of the composer.



Werner Fabricius
Johann Sebastian Bach

Even Johann Sebastian Bach was closely linked with the University Church through numerous performances and commissioned works. The cantata 'Der Geist hilft unsrer Schwachheit auf' was first performed in the University Church in 1729. Max Reger worked for a short time in 1907 as music director at Leipzig University. Many well-known musicians and musicologists like Hermann Kretzschmar, Hermann Grabner, Frederick Rabenschlag, Max Pommer and, until 2004, Wolfgang Unger were among the university music directors of modern times, who maintained and developed the artistic heritage and tradition of the university.

Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy
Max Reger

Today students and faculty of the University of Leipzig are involved in the Leipzig University Choir, in the Leipzig University Orchestra  and in the Unibigband Leipzig and other ensembles. Performances of Bach's oratorios and other choral works are part of the regular programme as well as the end of term concerts of the University Orchestra and the biennial Leipzig University Music Festival. In a widely noticed Memorial Concert on the 40th Anniversary of the demolition of the University Church on 30 May 2008 in St Thomas Church, the Leipzig University Choir and the Mendelsohn Orchestra under the baton of Music Director David Timm performed the premiere of the five-part work 'Epitaph' by Volker Bräutigam, which had been commissioned for this occasion. The University of Leipzig University Music under the direction of Music Director David Timm will continue to build on the rich centuries-old musical tradition of the University Church St Paul, Leipzig. The Foundation will support and actively promote this within its financial means.