Rudolf Kelber

Rudolf Kelber (born 1948, Traunstein, Germany) is a German organist, harpsichordist, conductor and church musician.

Biography

Rudolf Kelber began his musical education at high school in Nuremberg State Conservatory and received instruction in piano, organ, cello and music theory. From 1967 to 1974 he studied church music, conducting and organ (master class) at the Musikhochschule in Munich. Among his teachers were Karl Richter and Franz Lehrndorfer (organ), Maria Landes-Hindemith and Erik Then-Bergh (piano), as well as Jan Koetsier and Kurt Eichhorn (conducting).

Rudolf Kelber worked as a theatre conductor in Gelsenkirchen (1974–1976) and in Heidelberg (1976–1982). At the same time he played chamber music extensively and attended authentic performance practice classes with Alan Curtis, Gustav Leonhardt and Nikolaus Harnoncourt.

In 1982 Rudolf Kelber succeeded Heinz Wunderlich as cantor and organist at the Hauptkirche St. Jacobi in Hamburg.

Kelber initiated the fundamental restoration of the Arp Schnitger organ, the largest sounding baroque organ in existence, in the Hauptkirche St. Jacobi, which was completed in 1993. The second organ of St. Jacobi (Kemper 1960/1968) was also repaired on his initiative in 2008.

The tenure of Rudolf Kelber at the Hauptkirche St. Jacobi in Hamburg ended 2015. He continues to perform as organist, harpsichordist and jazz pianist and composes.

Organist

Three performances of the complete organ works of Johann Sebastian Bach in 1985, 1994 and 2000 have been the highlights of Kelber’s appearances as a concert organist.

Kelber has performed as organ soloist in the U.S., Japan, Israel, and almost all European countries with a wide repertoire: in addition to composers in the North German tradition (determined by the historic Schnitger organ) he also plays the music of Liszt, Reger and Messiaen, as well as arrangements of symphonies or parts from operas, tango and blues. He has frequently accompanied silent films with organ improvisations.

Conductor

Rudolf Kelber has conducted the great Passions, oratorios and requiems as well as a lot of baroque, classical, romantic and modern symphonic works.

Staged performances of operas and oratorios by Cavalieri, Monteverdi, Stradella, Purcell, Handel, Gluck and Mozart have developed under his direction in both Heidelberg and Hamburg

In 2005 the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar by Andrew Lloyd Webber was produced in St. Jacobi.

From 2005 to 2009 Kelber conducted five baroque operas from the repertoire of the Hamburg Gänsemarkt opera in concert performances at the Bucerius Kunst Forum for the ZEIT-Stiftung.

Premieres

Works

Compositions

Reconstructions and compilations

Awards

In 1972 Kelber received the Richard-Strauss-Prize of the city of Munich.

In 2015 he was awarded the Arp Schnitger Verdienstmedaille of the Arp Schnitger Society.

Teaching

From 2003 until 2015 Rudolf Kelber has been teaching organ playing at the University of the Arts Bremen and from 2008 until 2015 repertoire studies at Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg.

Discography

Sources

Deutsche Nationalbibliothek / Deutsches Musikarchiv:

Concert programs, CDs and the German newspaper "Hamburger Abendblatt" (with about 240 entries for "Rudolf Kelber" in the "Online-Archiv"):

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