In memoriam Professor Wolfram Behrendt

1 November 1934 – 3 July 2026

The Union of the European Phoniatricians mourns Professor Wolfram Behrendt, who died in Leipzig on 3 July 2026 at the age of 91. European phoniatrics has lost a distinguished clinician and scholar, a former President of the UEP, and above all a colleague whose gift for bringing people together helped sustain professional ties across a divided continent.

Born in Leipzig in 1934, Wolfram Behrendt studied medicine at Leipzig University from 1952 to 1957 while pursuing private vocal studies with Paul Reinecke and Fritz Polster. Although a career as a lyric baritone was open to him, he chose medicine; music and singing nevertheless remained central to his life and shaped his exceptional understanding of the human voice. After qualifying in pathological anatomy, he joined the Department of Otorhinolaryngology at Leipzig University Hospital in 1963, obtained specialist certification in otorhinolaryngology, completed his habilitation, and in 1976 assumed leadership of the Department of Voice, Speech and Hearing Disorders. In 1992, he was appointed Professor of Otorhinolaryngology, with a focus on Phoniatrics and Paediatric Audiology, and served as acting head of the ENT Department from 1992 to 1995.

Professor Behrendt embodied the close relationship between otorhinolaryngology and phoniatrics and paediatric audiology. He fostered an exemplary culture of collegial – indeed, genuinely friendly – cooperation between the two disciplines in Leipzig, always guided by the interests of patients. His research and clinical work centred on the child and adolescent voice, the professional singing voice, chronic laryngitis, and the rehabilitation of patients after laryngectomy. For almost three decades he also served as phoniatrician to the boys of the Leipzig St Thomas Choir and cared for young choristers, students of singing, and performing artists throughout the region.

Professor Behrendt made a major contribution to cooperation and collegial relations among European phoniatricians. From 1979 to 1999 he initiated and led the International Phoniatrics Symposia in Leipzig. During the Cold War, these meetings brought phoniatricians from Eastern and Western Europe together at a time when travel, communication, and open professional contact were often constrained and sometimes personally difficult. The symposia created a rare and trusted forum in which colleagues could share scientific knowledge, maintain professional dialogue, and cultivate relationships that grew into lasting friendships. Professor Behrendt preserved close ties with phoniatric societies throughout Central and Eastern Europe and, after the fall of the Iron Curtain, actively supported colleagues and departments whose development had been restricted by political circumstances.

In 1999 he was elected President of the Union of the European Phoniatricians, serving until 2001. His presidency was a natural expression of work pursued over decades: connecting people across borders, strengthening the standing of phoniatrics, and safeguarding its distinctly European tradition. His international esteem was reflected in honorary memberships of the Austrian, Czech, Polish, Hungarian, and Russian phoniatric societies. Among his distinctions were the Hermann Gutzmann Medal, the Purkinje Medal, and the Cross of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Generations of students, physicians, and young researchers knew Wolfram Behrendt as a demanding yet generous teacher, a loyal mentor, and a man of integrity, warmth, humour, and deep humanity. He gave younger colleagues confidence, stood by his teams, and understood medicine as both scientific responsibility and service to others. Even after retirement, he supported ENT colleagues in Ethiopia and continued his commitment to organisations representing people who had undergone laryngectomy.

We remember Professor Wolfram Behrendt with profound gratitude and respect. The bridges he built across Europe – between countries, disciplines, and people – remain part of his legacy and of the shared history of the UEP.

Michael Fuchs and Andreas Dietz
University Hospital Leipzig, Germany