Bass, Warner

Warner Seelig-Bass was born in 1915 in Brandenburg an der Havel, Germany, the son of Eugen Seelig and Helene Bass. His father was an engineer and founder of the factory Spingal and Seelig, which produced electrical motors. After completing his secondary studies at the Saldernsche Gymnasium (Saldria), he attended the University of Berlin, where he studied music and theater studies, philosophy, and foreign languages. He also took classes at the State Academy for Music ( Staatlich-Akademischen Hochschule für Musik ), also in Berlin. There he majored in conducting, while studying piano and composition.

In 1930 Warner Seelig-Bass became the assistant conductor and composer of stage music for the Kassel State Theater, a position he held until he was dismissed in 1933 for being Jewish. He then became conductor for the Jüdischer Kulturbund Theater, where he conducted both symphonic and operatic performances. In 1938 he emigrated to the United States by way of Cuba, and settled in New York. There he became known as Warner S. (Seeley) Bass.

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