Paul Sacher (28 April 190626 May 1999) was a Swiss conducting, patron and billionaire businessman. At the time of his death Sacher was majority shareholder of pharmaceutical company Hoffmann-La Roche and was considered the third richest person in the world with an estimated net worth of US$13 billion.
He founded and conducted the Basler Kammerorchester (1926–1987). He commissioned notable works of composers of the 20th century and premiered them with the chamber orchestra. While better known for his interest in new music, he was also devoted to music of baroque and classical eras; he founded the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, institute for early music, in 1933.
Sacher had 3 children outside marriage, two daughters, Katharina and Cornelia, with Countess of Faber-Castell, and a son, Georg Schmid.
Pierre Boulez wrote his Grawemeyer Award-winning work Incises for Sacher's 90th birthday. Boulez bequeathed his entire catalogue (including drafts) to the Paul Sacher Foundation. Henze dedicated his Tenth Symphony to the memory of Sacher, who had commissioned it but died before its completion.
In 1983, Sacher acquired the Stravinsky estate. "The Founder" : Chronology, Paul Sacher Foundation. The Paul Sacher Stiftung (Foundation) is located in the centre of Basel (in Münsterplatz) and houses one of the world's most important musical-manuscript collections. Sacher bought most of these manuscripts himself, and they include complete collections by several important twentieth-century composers (including Lutosławski, Ligeti, Pierre Boulez and Steve Reich). In 1997, he received an honorary doctorate from the Academy of Music in Kraków.
Conrad Beck | Für Paul Sacher : Drei Epigramme für Violoncello solo |
Luciano Berio | Les Mots sont allés |
Pierre Boulez | Messagesquisse, for 7 cellos |
Benjamin Britten | Tema "Sacher" |
Henri Dutilleux | Trois Strophes sur le nom de Sacher |
Wolfgang Fortner | Zum Spielen für den 70. Geburtstag : Thema und Variationen für Violoncello Solo |
Alberto Ginastera | Puneña No. 2, Op. 45 |
Cristóbal Halffter | Variationen über das Thema eSACHERe |
Hans Werner Henze | Capriccio per Paul Sacher |
Heinz Holliger | Chaconne, für Violoncello Solo |
Klaus Huber | Transpositio ad infinitum |
Witold Lutosławski | Sacher-Variationen |
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