About Hermann Heiss
Lived 1897 – 1966 (aged 68). Hermann Heiss was a German composer, pedagogue, music teacher and musician.
Hermann Heiss (29 December 1897 – 6 December 1966) was a German composer, pianist, and educator. His work was part of the music event in the art competition at the 1932 Summer Olympics.
Life Heiss was born in Darmstadt and studied composition first in Frankfurt with Bernhard Sekles in 1921, and then in Vienna with Josef Matthias Hauer from 1924 to 1926. After leaving Hauer's tutelage he returned to his native city to study the piano and compose. In 1928 he relocated to the island of Spiekeroog in the North Sea, where he taught music at the until 1933. He then moved to Berlin where he unsuccessfully sought performances of his works. During the war he composed music for the Luftwaffe and for other military groups . He was also self-taught. Hauer dedicated his book Twelve-Tone Technique (1925) to Heiss, who later claimed to have collaborated with Hauer on its contents . He introduced twelve-tone music at Darmstadt in 1946 and composed electronic music at the Studio for Electronic Music (WDR) in Cologne in 1956, where his Elektronische Komposition I was performed and broadcast in a concert of the Musik der Zeit series on 30 May 1956. He then founded a studio of his own in Darmstadt .
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Important facts
People in Hermann Heiss's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Hermann Heiss's
Frequently asked questions
Who was Hermann Heiss?
German composer (1897–1966)
When was Hermann Heiss born?
Hermann Heiss was born on 29 December 1897 in Darmstadt.
When did Hermann Heiss die?
Hermann Heiss died on 6 December 1966 in Darmstadt.
What was Hermann Heiss's occupation?
Hermann Heiss was a composer, pedagogue, music teacher and musician.
What nationality was Hermann Heiss?
Hermann Heiss was German.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Hermann Heiss. https://biography.guide/hermann-heiss/
MLA: "Hermann Heiss." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/hermann-heiss/.
Chicago: "Hermann Heiss." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/hermann-heiss/.
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