Mosman’s Alan Ziegler retires from his job at 86 and says he will have to learn to sleep longer

MOSMAN’S Alan Ziegler has just retired at the age of 86. He says that if you derive satisfaction from performing a worthwhile service, creating something or just keeping yourself occupied, stay in the job.

Alan Ziegler will still continue working at the Mosman Music Club, despite his recent retirement. Picture: John Appleyard

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ALAN Ziegler of Mosman is an inspiration to seniors who don’t want to quit working.

Mr Ziegler has only just decided to retire at the age of 86 — just shy of 87.

“If you derive satisfaction from performing a worthwhile service, creating something or just keeping yourself occupied, stay in the job,” he advises.

Mr Ziegler’s main concern about retiring is whether he will able to sleep in, having risen every weekday at 4.30am to drive to his job at Fox Studios at Moore Park for a day that began at 6.30am and finished at 12.30pm. He was in charge of program production for classical music at Playbill.

Why did he kept working?

Alan Ziegler with his musician daughters Leone (left) and Fiona Ziegler.

“Sheer determination and having a purpose in life,” he said.

“I have been fortunate that, apart from ageing a bit, I remain in reasonably good health.”

After university, Mr Ziegler began his working life in 1950 as a cadet at the ABC. He remembers the clumsy typewriters that produced unreadable carbon copies. Now he’s adept at computers but confesses he doesn’t bother with Twitter.

After the ABC, Mr Ziegler worked for 25 years in the family publishing business, Oswald Ziegler Publications which produced the first pictorial book on the Sydney Opera House.

But with the publishing world struggling, Mr Ziegler then forged a distinguished career in orchestra administration, including national program director for Australia’s orchestras, producing more than 220 printed programs each year.

Fiona Ziegler, Alan Ziegler, his grandsons Jacques Emery and Douglas Emery and their mother Leone Ziegler.

In concert with conductor Brian Buggy between 1984 and 1994, Mr Ziegler was also responsible for organising the highly successful family concerts by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.

He was also invited to Britain to introduce family concerts to the BBC Philharmonic.

“My family concerts with the BBC Philharmonic were so successful that the BBC introduced family concerts into their annual BBC Proms,” Mr Ziegler said.

In 1984, he also introduced the preconcert talks before SSO concerts.

Classical music has also been a passion for Mr Ziegler.

His late wife Eva Kelly was a classical violinist. His daughter Leone and Fiona Ziegler are violinists with the SSO.

The musical Ziegler family pictured in 2004.

Grandson Jacques Emery, a former student of Mosman High School, is now studying at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and plays double bass with the Felix Bornholdt Trio which performed last Sunday in Mosman.

Despite his retirement, Mr Ziegler will continue in his second but voluntary job as head of the Mosman Music Club.

He’s been director of the club for 12 years and is dedicated to bringing classical music to audiences in Mosman.

The Mosman Music Club presents nine concerts each year and Mr Ziegler does all the behind-the-scenes work for the concerts.

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Mr Ziegler said he’s hoping to let go of some of the work deadlines in his retirement.

“First I have to try to relax and unwind. My work has had plenty of stress — everything means deadlines,” he said.

“And I have to become accustomed to sleeping longer.”

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