Max Broermann

Max Broermann was born on 17 September 1906 in Ehrenbreitstein (Germany). He was the son of a lawyer and displayed musical talent from an early age. According to later accounts, he was already presenting his own compositions publicly at the age of ten. During his school years, he received musical instruction at the Koblenz Conservatory. After completing his schooling in 1926, Max Broermann enrolled at the University of Bonn. There, he studied musicology under Ludwig Schiedermair while also pursuing courses in art history and philosophy. To support himself financially during his university years, he worked as a dance musician. However, illness interrupted his studies and ultimately forced him to discontinue his university education before completing it. Following his recovery, Max Broermann returned to Koblenz and continued his musical development through private study. He received instruction in counterpoint from Josef Buschmann and studied instrumentation with Alfred Brüggemann.
From 1936 onward, performances of Max Broermann’s works can be documented in concerts and theatre productions in Koblenz as well as in radio broadcasts transmitted from Cologne and Frankfurt. For example, two of his songs were premiered in 1936 by none other than Heinrich Schlusnus, while additional songs were performed by Fred Drissen in 1939. His professional activities gradually expanded beyond composition to conducting and dramaturgical work. During the 1941–1942 season, he served as ballet conductor at the German National Theatre in Weimar. In 1942–1943, he worked at the Municipal Theatre in Trier as opera dramaturge and répétiteur, and from 1943 to 1944, he was Kapellmeister at the Municipal Theatre in Stralsund. After wartime closures brought theatrical activities to an end, Broermann was assigned to work in armaments factories.
Max Broermann composed works in a broad range of genres, including orchestral works, piano pieces, organ music, choral settings, and approximately eighty songs. He also composed incidental and stage music for theatrical productions.
Max Broermann died in Eichstätt (Germany) on 5 November 1946 as a result of complications following an appendectomy.

In my possession is the autograph manuscript of the Passacaglia in B minor for piano by Max Broermann. According to the manuscript, the work was completed on 24 November 1937 and is dedicated to the pianist Elly Ney. The piece was premiered by Max Broermann himself on 22 April 1938 on Reichssender Köln as part of a broadcast programme (Musik der Zeit) devoted to his music.