Siegfried Palm was born in Barmen (now Wuppertal). At the age of 8 he started to learn playing the cello from his father; later he studied with Enrico Mainardi in master classes in Salzburg and Lucerne.[1][2]
Siegfried Palm premiered cello concertos as well as contemporary chamber music. He was a member of the Hamann-Quartett 1951–1962. He played in a duo with the pianistAloys Kontarsky 1962–1983, and since 1967 he was a member of the piano trioRostal/Schröter/Palm, replacing Gaspar Cassadó. In 1962 he became teacher of a master class for violoncello at the Hochschule für Musik Köln (then called Staatliche Hochschule für Musik), and from 1972 until 1976 head of this institute.[4]
Siegfried Palm influenced the music of his century considerably, comparable to the cellists Gregor Piatigorsky and Mstislav Rostropovich. He suggested composers to write new works for his instrument, and it is partly due to him that the cello advanced to one of the most important solo instruments in contemporary music.
Siegfried Palm premiered new music, many composers wrote new works for him, some dedicated to him, music for cello and orchestra as well as chamber music and music for cello solo.[2][3][4][6][9] Music has included:
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Tim Janof (1998). "Conversation with Siegfried Palm". Internet Cello Society. Retrieved 31 August 2009. Siegfried Palm has had a distinguished and varied performing career. He was Principal Cellist of orchestras in Lubeck, Hamburg, and Cologne, cellist in the Hamann Quartet, and a member of a trio with Max Rostal and Heinz Schroter. He has given masterclasses worldwide and has served as a jury member at numerous international competitions. He has recorded for several companies and has had works dedicated to him by composers such as Krzystof Penderecki, Yannis Xenakis, Boris Blacher, and Gyorgy Ligeti. He was Director of the State Conservatoire in Cologne, Director of the Deutsche Oper in Berlin, President of the German Composers' Society, and President of ESTA. In 1969 and 1976 he was awarded the German Gramophone prize, and in 1972 he was awarded the Grand Prix du Disque International.
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Gerhard Rohde (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung) (8 June 2005). "Das komponierende Cello – Anreger der Avantgarde: Zum Tod von Siegfried Palm" (in German). Archived from the original on 26 July 2011. Retrieved 31 August 2009. Die Liste der Uraufführungen, die sich mit seinem Namen verbinden, ist unendlich lang, und die Namen der Komponisten lesen sich wie ein Gotha der Neuen Musik: György Ligeti, Winfried Zillig, Boris Blacher, Rolf Liebermann, Morton Feldman, Miko Kelemen, Wolfgang Rihm, York Höller, Dimitri Terzakis, Tilo Medek, Wolfgang Fortner, Giuseppe Sinopoli, Mauricio Kagel, Cristobal Halffter, Isang Yun und Bernd Alois Zimmermann. (translated: The list of premieres connected to his name, is infinite, and the names of composers read like a who's who of contemporary music.) ... Entscheidend für Siegfried Palms Lebensweg wurde nach dem Krieg die lange Mitgliedschaft als Solocellist im Sinfonieorchester des Norddeutschen Rundfunks unter Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt. Der Konzertmeister des NDR-Sinfonieorchesters Bernhard Hamann nahm Palm in sein Streichquartett auf. (translated: The course of life of Siegfried Palm after the war was decided by his long membership in the NDR Symphony Orchestra. The concert master Bernhard Hamann included him in his string quartett.
^ abcd"Cellist Professor Siegfried Palm erhält das Große Verdienstkreuz mit Stern" (in German). 12 January 2004. Retrieved 1 September 2009. Professor Palm übte die ehrenamtliche Aufgabe des Präsidenten des Deutsch-Französischen Kulturrats von 1988 in drei Amtsperioden bis Ende 2000 aus. ... Seit 1998 ist er Präsident des Internationalen Jugend-Festspieltreffens Bayreuth, dessen Vorstand er seit 1994 angehört.
^"Intercomunicazione". Retrieved 10 September 2009. Siegfried Palm is virtually a legend, probably the most adventurous and respected new-music cellist of the 60s, at least in Europe, and the dedicatee and premiere performer of many important pieces of the era, including the cello concertos of B. A. Zimmermann and Ligeti.
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