Wiebke Hoogklimmer - Contralto, Producer and Director

Wiebke Hoogklimmer was born in Hannover, Germany, and began her musical education at the age of eight as a member of the "Girls Choir Hannover". She continued her education at the Academy of Music and Acting in Hamburg where she studied opera direction on the course initiated by Prof. Goetz Friedrich and Prof. August Everding, and graduated with distinction.
She has worked as assistant director, stage manager, and substitute in the artistic management office at the Niedersaechsischen Opera in Hannover, the Hamburg State Opera, the German Opera Berlin and the International Summer Course at Schloss Weikersheim. During this time she worked with the following directors and stage designers: Guenter Roth, Stephan Mettin, Martin Rupprecht, Hans-Peter Lehmann, John Cox, John Dew, Erhard Fischer, Herbert Wernicke, Goetz Friedrich, Andreas Reinhardt.

After finishing her studies she started private vocal tuition with Elisabeth Umierski (Berlin) and continued with Prof. Annie Schoonus (Academy of Music and Acting in Hamburg) and with Christiane Bach-Roehr (Comic Opera Berlin).

In 1988 to 1991 she sang with the RIAS chamber choir and had her first solo stage appearance in the role of Arnalta in Monteverdi's "Coronation of Poppea" at the Junges Theater Goettingen. She went on to sing the parts of both the king and queen in Toovey's "Ubu" at the opera stabile of the State Opera in Hamburg and then the parts of the Third Lady in Mozart's "Magic Flute" and Orfeo in Gluck's "Orfeo ed Euridice". 2009 she sang the part of the Geneviève in Debussy's "Pelléas et Mélisande" in the opera stabile of the State Opera in Hamburg.

Wiebke Hoogklimmer mainly works as a solo contralto, giving concerts and recitals. Her repertoire ranges from baroque to contemporary music. She equally enjoys singing well known and lesser known and unusual works.
A good example is the recital she arranged with the male alto Dirk Klawuhn containing songs by Purcell and Blow. The highlight of this recital is the duet "Ode on the Death of Mr. Henry Purcell". The interesting and unusual feature of this interpretation is the female alto singing the lower part and the male alto the higher.
Her repertoire so far includes, amongst other pieces, Handels Messiah, Pergolesi's Stabat Mater, Bach's Christmas Oratorio (performed in the Berliner Dom), St. John's Passion, Magnificat, Vivaldi's Gloria (D major), Monteverdi's Magnificat, Mozart's Coronation Mass, Spatzenmesse, Mendelssohn-Bartholdy's Paulus, Elijah, and Rossini's Petite messe solonelle.

Wiebke Hoogklimmer and the pianist Prof. Patrick Walliser have been working together since 1998. So far they have performed recitals with songs by Johannes Brahms, Franz Schubert, Luise Adolpha Le Beau, Clara and Robert Schumann, Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, Hugo Wolf, Arthur Honegger, Alban Berg, C. René Hirschfeld, Gustav Mahler and Lili Boulanger.

In 2003 her CD "Clairières dans le ciel" was published with the so named song cycle by Lili Boulanger - transposed for contralto - and with selected songs by Schubert and Mahler, and at the piano Patrick Walliser. The Label is THOROFON (order-nr. CTH 2477).
2006 her CD "Franz Schubert: Winterreise" was released with a live recording of a Lieder Recital (on the Piano again Patrick Walliser) with her own Label.

Because of her huge interest in film Wiebke Hoogklimmer has worked in different film productions during many years. Among others she has worked as assistant to costume design and props management in the ZDF Television film production of "Superbia" (1986) by Ulrike Ottinger. In 1994 Wiebke Hoogklimmer has worked for the first gay and lesbian film festival in St. Petersburg. 2005 she has worked as assistant producer for the filmproduction "18.15 Uhr ab Ostkreuz" by Jörn Hartmann, which had the world première at the Berlin International Film Festival - Berlinale 2006. From 2006 till 2008 Wiebke Hoogklimmer was one of the curators of the Pornfilmfestival Berlin (an Art Film Festival!), which will happen from 24th - 29th October 2017 for the 12th time because of the huge success. 2007 Wiebke Hoogklimmer has worked for the film "OTTO; or, Up with Dead People" by Bruce LaBruce, which had the world première at the Berlin International Film Festival - Berlinale 2008. In 2008 she has worked as assistant director and continuity for the feature film "Bandaged" by Maria Beatty, which had the world première in London in April 2009. In 2010 Wiebke Hoogklimmer has worked for "Mommy Is Coming" by Cheryl Dunye, which had the world première at the Berlin International Film Festival - Berlinale 2012. In 2016 Wiebke Hoogklimmer has worked for "FLUIDØ" by Shu Lea Cheang. This film had his world première at the Berlin International Film Festival - Berlinale 2017.

Since 12/31/2011 Wiebke Hoogklimmer's new website www.volksliedsammlung.com is online. The website is about German Folk Songs as therapy for people suffering from dementia (Alzheimer's disease) with many Folk Songs lyrics and recordings by Wiebke Hoogklimmer. In January 2012 the first CD of this project was published: "Kinderlieder - Album1 - Volkslieder: Kindheit - Gedächtnis - Gefühl - Alter - Identität" (Wiebke Hoogklimmer - Contralto solo).
In November 2013 her second Singalong CD "Weihnachtslieder - Album 2 - Volkslieder: Kindheit - Gedächtnis - Gefühl - Alter - Identität" was published again under her Label Pfefferkuchen Records.

Since 2012 Wiebke Hoogklimmer is working together with the BEHR'S Verlag. The BEHR'S Verlag has published Large Print Song Books with her Sing along albums. First the Book plus CD "Volkslieder - Musik als Schlüssel zu Demenzkranken" was released. In October 2016 the Christmas Songs followed: "Weihnachtslieder - Musik als Schlüssel zu Menschen mit Demenz".

Wiebke Hoogklimmer is living in Berlin since 1985.

Patrick Walliser, born in Switzerland, is piano professor at the "Universität der Künste" (UdK) in Berlin. He has a lot of experience working with international singers at the German Opera Berlin as well as working as a conductor in Kiel, Ulm and Wiesbaden.
Furthermore, he worked as assistant to Giuseppe Sinopoli in Berlin, Rom, Taormina, and at the Milan Scala and as co-conductor of Johannes Kalitzke during the "Steirischen Herbst" and in Paris, Vienna and Berlin.
His particular love - apart from some excursions into the areas of chansons and theatre - is accompaniment in recitals.
He played one of the 4 pianos in Aribert Reimann's opera "Bernarda Albas Haus" at the Comic Opera Berlin and worked on other productions there as well. He has worked also for the RuhrTriennale (Die Soldaten) and for the EuropaChorAkademie.