Hans Jürgen Wenzel

Since 2000 he has been Honorary Professor at the Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber Dresden, and has also worked as a lecturer in composition at home and abroad. Among his students were Annette Schlünz, Uwe Krause, Karsten Gundermann, Michael Flade and Alexander Keuk.

Wenzel was 1989 vice-president of the Verband der Komponisten und Musikwissenschaftler der DDR [de] (VKM) and its President from 1989 to 1990. From 1990 to 1993, he was the successor of Wolfgang Lesser as head of the Verband Deutscher Komponisten (VDK).

From 1978 to 1988 he was conductor of the Staatskapelle Halle. From 1988 Hans Jürgen Wenzel worked as a freelance composer and conductor in Berlin and Halle, his special commitment was to New Music. He was the founder and director of special ensembles for new music, e.g. the Ensemble Konfrontation [de] (Halle), the Ensemble Phorminx [de] (Darmstadt) and the Ensemble United Berlin.

From 1962 to 1965 he was ballet conductor and répétiteur at the Kulturinsel Halle. In 1965 Wenzel became musical director at the Thalia Theater (Halle) [de]. In 1969 he changed again to the Landestheater as conductor and composer. In 1976 he founded the Composer class Halle [de]. The classes still exist today in Halle, Dresden, Magdeburg and Zeitz. Children and young people are accompanied there in the creative, compositional handling of sheet music and work together with musicians on their first own pieces.

Born in Weißwasser, Wenzel first received a violin education at the University of Rostock. From 1957 to 1962 he studied conducting and musical composition with Ruth Zechlin at the Hochschule für Musik "Hanns Eisler" in Berlin.

Hans Jürgen Wenzel (4 March 1939 – 8 August 2009) was a German conductor and composer. He was chairman of the Verband der Komponisten und Musikwissenschaftler der DDR [de] and professor for musical composition at the Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber Dresden.