Claas Willeke

Claas Willeke 2009 at the St. Ingbert Jazz Festival

Claas Willeke (born April 12, 1966 in Bielefeld ; † October 13, 2013 near Sandersdorf-Brehna ) was a German musician , composer and music teacher .

Life

After studying music education at the Berlin University of the Arts with a focus on jazz , Willeke received scholarships for composition lessons in the field of new and electronic music (with Kirk Nurock , Henry Martin, Maria Schneider and Franz Martin Olbrisch ). As a saxophonist and clarinetist , Willeke was active in numerous groups and ensembles with different line-ups. He played with Aki Takase , Alexander von Schlippenbach , Jerry Granelli , Thärichens Tentett and Georg Ruby . In the ensemble InZeit he worked with Wollie Kaiser and Stefan Scheib and in the artist group Die Redner with Florian Penner and Oliver Strauch . He also led his own bands. Willeke also composed for film and theater, radio plays and productions by his wife Marguerite Donlon .

Since 2007 Willeke has been professor for jazz theory, composition and electronic music at the Saar University of Music .

On the way to a performance in Berlin, Willeke had a fatal accident on October 13, 2013 in a car accident on the A9 .

1995: Improvisors Pool Backgrounds for Improvisors : Axel Dörner , Sam Rivers , Tina Wrase, Felix Wahnschaffe , Tilmann Dehnhard , Alexander von Schlippenbach, Horst Nonnenmacher , Johannes Bockholt-Dams ; FMP
2002: Wilde Schöne Welt
2008: JFK-Show Live in Berlin (book and DVD) Kunstanst! Fter Verlag, ISBN 978-3-9811465-7-8

2007 Media Art Prize from Saarland Radio for the JFK show by the ensemble Die Redner

personal data
SURNAME	Willeke, Claas
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	German saxophonist, clarinetist and composer
DATE OF BIRTH	April 12, 1966
PLACE OF BIRTH	Bielefeld
DATE OF DEATH	October 13, 2013
Place of death	at Brehna