Kuhne, Ernst Richard
born 18/10/1864 in Brinnis/Kreis Delitzsch, Germany
died 21/05/1933 in Magdeburg, Germany
Teacher, organist, music director.
Kuhne received his first seminar training in Delitzsch and was then a teacher and organist in Kirchfährendorf near Merseburg, Germany. After further music training in Leipzig he attended department for church music in 1888/89 at the Royal Academy of Arts in Berlin.
In 1889 he was a teacher at the second secondary school in Eisleben, Germany and starting from 1890 a teacher at the first Folks' Girls School in Magdeburg-Sudenburg. He was active also as organist at the St. Ambrosius Church there. He created the Sudenburg Church Singing Club and the musical assembly, which merged later into the Oratory Union. At this time he had already done performances of great church musical pieces, et al. from Johannes Brahms and Heinrich von Herzogenberg, as well as his own compositions. Starting from 1891 he was pupil of the cathedral organist Theophil Forchhammer and deputy to Fritz Kauffmann in the Reblingschen Singing Club.
In 1897 he is also a conductor of the1868 founded music club that verifiably had its meeting place in Belvedere at Fürstenwall. Following the illness of Hermann Wehe (1899) Kuhne took over his position in the Luisenschule at the cathedral High School and also at the cathedral. After the death of Wehe in 1899 he applied as Wehe successor, which on 01/04/1900 he started the position. The title of Royal Director of Music requested by the consistory was conferred on him in 1906. Kuhne firmly better supported musical training of the boys of the cathedral choir as a cathedral choir conductor.
WIthin his term of office the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Magdeburg cathedral choir occured, which had been created again in the year 1818 after an eight year hiatus. Here the rising success of the choir under Kuhne was appreciated both in the arrangement of the services and in the great performances. Outside indication was the award of the title “Royal Cathedral Choir in Magdeburg”, which lost its meaning after the revolution of 1918. The title of established graduate secondary school teacher he received in 1920. In 1923 Bernhard Engelke became his successor.
