Udo Zimmermann (1943 – 2021) is one of the most famous composers of the 20th century. With well over 200 productions, his opera »Die weiße Rose« is one of the most frequently performed contemporary chamber operas. As a conductor, artistic director and artistic director, he has also influenced musical life from Bonn to Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich and Berlin as a committed, controversial advocate of »contemporary witness« in music and theater.
His hometown of Dresden remained the center of his life. It was here that his operas »Die weiße Rose« (1967), »Levins Mühle« (1972) and »Der Schuhu und die fliegende Prinzessin« (1976) were premiered, where he wrote commissioned works for the Staatskapelle, Philharmonie and Kreuzchor, and where he founded the Dresden Center for Contemporary Music and the European Center for the Arts Hellerau. As a composer, Zimmermann repeatedly described himself as a "modern romantic" who wanted to move, touch and inspire his listeners to reflect.
The Carl Maria von Weber Museum is dedicating a comprehensive special exhibition to his life and work with documents and objects from his estate, audio samples and film recordings.