Wilhelm Weismann

Wilhelm Weismann (20 September 1900 – 14 May 1980) was a German composer and musicologist. Life On 20 September, Weismann was born in Alfdorf/Württemberg on the plateau of Welzheim forest. His parents ran a general store. His mother, sister of the renowned musicologist Alfred Heuß, encouraged his artistic inclinations and he received his first piano and music lessons. At an early age the son of a merchant showed his musical interest by composing small choral pieces. After a long struggle for his father’s permission, he studied composition (with Sigfrid Karg-Elert) and musicology (with Hermann Abert and Arnold Schering) at the State University of Music and Performing Arts Stuttgart from 1919 to 1921 and then in Leipzig from 1921 to 1923. After completing his studies, he embarked on a momentous trip to Italy in 1924, visiting Sicily, Rome, Naples and Florence, during which he was greatly impressed by Italian architecture and painting. In the Uffizi he could see original compositions by Carlo Gesualdo. They inspired him to “Four Italian Madrigals”, which were performed in 1925 at the Donaueschinger Musiktage and made him suddenly famous. From 1924 he was editor and correspondent of th