Uwe Dierksen (1959-2026)

THE ALTE OPER FRANKFURT MOURNS THE LOSS OF UWE DIERKSEN, WHO PASSED AWAY ON 10 FEBRUARY 2026 AFTER A LONG ILLNESS

‘Hirngespinste/Pipe Dreams’ – this was the name given by trombonist Uwe Dierksen in 2023 to a staged concert at the Volksbühne Frankfurt and then also to a CD album with 17 pieces in which he dealt with the various stages of his cancer. The music: a lesson in courage, humanity and finitude. The musician: combative, self-determined, relentlessly open-hearted. Now Uwe Dierksen has died.

He had been a trombonist in the Ensemble Modern since 1983, virtually from the very beginning. This made the Alte Oper Frankfurt his musical home, so to speak. He came and went, always bringing the latest music with him — music that he was passionate about, and that he had all the technical and stylistic skills required to perform. “We have finally freed ourselves from the dogma of serialism and the idea that new music must be unwieldy or difficult to appreciate,” he said, offering his clear view of the new music scene. “Provocation alone is no longer enough. In my opinion, composers can and must finally ask themselves: What do I really want to say? It's an essential question, as difficult as it is necessary,' says this extremely present and committed musician. 

On the 40th anniversary of his Ensemble Modern, he was asked by the Frankfurter Rundschau which project had moved him most deeply over the four decades. He named Frank Zappa, whose music caused a sensation when performed by the Ensemble Modern at the Alte Oper in 2019. “Frank Zappa, even though – or perhaps precisely because – he doesn't fit into the so-called new music category, combined the new with the old in a very appealing and clever way, in my opinion.” 

The last time the trombonist appeared on stage was on 2 December 2025 at the Frankfurt Opera House, at Helmut Lachenmann's 90th birthday concert as part of the Happy New Ears series. Following Uwe Dierksen's passing, the music world, the city of Frankfurt and the Alte Oper have lost a unique musician and human being. He was also highly regarded as a sought-after soloist and composer of numerous works ranging from film music to avant-garde jazz. Our thoughts are with the family of Uwe Dierksen and the members of Ensemble Modern.

(11 February 2026)