*1872 and †1934 Frankfurt am Main
Bernhard Sekles studied composition at the Dr. Hoch’s Conservatory under Iwan Knorr, Bernhard Scholz and Engelbert Humperdinck, and piano under Lazzaro Uzielli.
From 1896 he himself taught theory, composition and orchestration. In 1923, he became the director of the Conservatory. In 1928, despite strong protests, he set up a Jazz class, the first of its kind worldwide, and put the Hungarian cellist and composer Mátyás Seiber in charge.
In 1933, Bernhard Sekles was dismissed from office and his music was banned. He died in Frankfurt in 1934. His students included Paul Hindemith, Rudi Stephan, Ottmar Gerster, Hans Rosbaud and Theodor W. Adorno, amongst others.
His works were all but forgotten. In 2011, the Frankfurt Musica Judaica Society published a CD with his late chamber music compositions entitled Bernhard Sekles Chamber Music.
Further information:
Bernhard Sekles als Komponist, Konservatoriumsdirektor und Pädagoge in frankfurt1933-1945.de (available in German only)