Death of Paul Hümpel Berliner Philharmoniker saddened by the death of tuba player
Paul Hümpel, long-time tuba player of the Berliner Philharmoniker, has died at the age of 80. From 1975 to 2010, his warm, expressive tone shaped the bass foundation of the orchestra’s brass section. Born in Holstein in 1945, he received his training from Rudi Schaefer at the Hamburg University of Music and with the German Armed Forces Military Band. After stints as a tuba-player in Oldenburg, Stuttgart, and Hamburg, he joined the Berliner Philharmoniker in 1975 as the successor to Heinrich Jürgens.
In addition to his orchestral work, he served on the Five-Member Council in 1987 and from 1990 to 1993, and occasionally acted as a guide during the orchestra’s tours. He also performed with the Philharmoniker’s brass ensembles and with the Bayreuth Festival Orchestra. It was important to Hümpel to pass on his experience to the younger generation—as a teacher at the Karajan Academy and the Berlin University of the Arts. Paul Hümpel died on March 22, 2026, at the age of 80.