March 12, 2011 On Saturday night, the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra performed Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 4 at Mahalia Jackson Theatre. The symphony was presented in memory of Klauspeter Seibel, who was the LPO’s Music Director from 1996 to 2005, and the Principal Guest Conductor from 2005 through 2010. Councilmember Clarkson presented a Proclamation to the Seibel family (Anne-Katrine, Fabian, and Tina Seibel) to honor the conductor, who passed away in his native Germany in January 2011.
Klauspeter Seibel’s Biography, from the LPO Website:
Principal Guest Conductor, served as Music Director for the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra from 1995-2005 and was a major figure on the musical stages of both Europe and the United States.
In Germany, Klauspeter served as music director for the Frankfurt, Kiel, and Freiburg Operas as well as the Nuremberg Symphony and conducted at many major opera houses, including Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Vienna, and Zurich. In the U.S., he enjoyed ongoing relationships with the symphonies and opera companies of Denver, Kansas City, Nashville, New Orleans, and Salt Lake City, among others.
Born in Offenbach, Germany, Klauspeter studied piano, conducting and composition at the Nuremberg and Munich Conservatories, and at the age of 21 started his conducting career, holding contracts with the Gärtnerplatz-Theater and the “Wilde Gungl” Symphony in Munich.
Mr. Seibel recorded for Deutsche Grammophon, RBM, Colosseum and CPO. Recordings include “Wings of Song” with Sir James Galway and the London Symphony Orchestra, the world premiere recording of Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s opera Der Ring des Polykrates, and the first recording of orchestral works by Franz Lehár.
In May 2008, Klauspeter was awarded an honorary Doctor of Music degree from Loyola University New Orleans for his collaborations with the university and his significant contribution to classical music in New Orleans. Mr. Seibel also received the City of Munich Richard Strauss Award and prizes at both the Malko Competition in Copenhagen and the Mitropoulos Competition in New York.
