I am a native of Africa, says the “singing surgeon”

What does a heart surgeon, a singer, a linguist, a fitness fanatic, an animal lover and an enthusiastic cook have in common? Everything, if you are Dr Wilhelm Lichtenberg. 

Not only has the “singing surgeon” launched a solo album and made a video with the renowned Dutch singer Stef Bos, he is also fluent in four languages and has appeared on a television cooking programme.

He says he grew up with music around him. “My father had a deep love of classical music and instilled that in me from a very early age. I played the trumpet in the symphony orchestra during my student years, but my first love was always singing. The first time I heard Luciano Pavarotti sing, was when I was fifteen and I decided there and then I wanted to be an opera singer. However, my father, ever the pragmatist, convinced me that I could practise medicine and sing in my spare time, but not the other way round. So, I heeded his advice.”

Six years ago, Dr Lichtenberg decided to start taking singing lessons to indulge himself in his love of music and singing. “It serves as a great lightning conductor. The solo album came about quite by chance, but was the realisation of a dream. I am incredibly grateful to my friend Riaan Steyn for the opportunity. My teacher, Violina Anguelov, is a genius and has been hugely influential and instrumental in the success I have achieved.

“I also have to make special mention of Ansphi van der Walt, my high school music teacher at Grey College in Bloemfontein. She has always been my greatest promotor and even had a bit of a stand-off with my father in the headmaster’s office about my choice of career, although I only found out about that many years later. That was in itself a very courageous thing to do. My father was a remarkable man and an imposing figure. One did not question his authority lightly.”

Tell us more about your studies and career.

After matriculating at Grey College in 1985, I studied at the Medical Faculty of the University of the Free State in Bloemfontein, where I qualified in 1991. I did two years of training in Critical Care Medicine under the legendary Prof Ben de Vaal before moving to Cape Town in 1995. I did a further two years of General Surgery before progressing to Cardiothoracic Surgery in the Christiaan Barnard Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Groote Schuur Hospital. I completed my training under the tutelage of Prof Peter Zilla and Prof Johan Brink.  I still work closely with Prof Brink, a man I greatly respect and admire as a teacher, a colleague and a friend.

During my training, I also worked as a research fellow at the Medtronic Cardiovascular Research Institute and the Cape Heart Centre at the University of Cape Town under Prof Zilla, a phenomenal scientist and teacher. I have been in private practice in Cape Town since 2006.

Describe a “normal” working day in the life of Dr Wilhelm Lichtenberg.

I am a complete endorphin junkie. I cannot function without regular exercise, so my day starts at about 05:30 in the gym near my office every morning. I have breakfast at the office and then do a ward round in the ICU. I am in the operating theatre 2-3 days a week and on alternate days I consult. The various music projects and charity work I’m involved with are taking an increasing amount of my time and I dedicate on average about a day and a half per week to that now. There is, of course, always the drudgery of paperwork and admin to attend to as well. My day usually ends at about 18:00 or 19:00.

You are fluent in four languages. How did that come about?

My father came to SA from Germany in 1949 and I never spoke anything other than German to him my entire life. My mother was Afrikaans, and that is the language I still speak to my siblings today. I learned Sesotho from my nanny before I spoke either German or Afrikaans and eventually learned English at nursery school. I attended the English medium classes at Grey College my entire school career and that is still our home language now.

I’ve learned a smattering of Xhosa and am in the process of trying to learn Italian to better help me understand what I sing, but that is not going as well as I had hoped.

How do you make time for your other hobbies such as cycling, cooking, swimming and hiking?

I’ve never been much good at time management, but somehow I always manage to find the time to do the things I love. Having an enormously patient and indulging wife who lets me be and do my own thing, does help. She’s an amazing woman and is really the one who deserves all the credit.

I also have to mention my absolutely phenomenal secretary, Sonja Sasman, who takes a huge load off my shoulders at work. Working alongside colleagues like Johan Brink and Prof Tony Linegar, the country’s leading Thoracic Surgeon, creates a wonderful “safety net”. It’s a great help and a comfort to know someone in the team always has your back.

Tell us more about your family.

My family is absolutely my everything and we spend time together as much as we can. My wife, Alta, is an advocate and works as a deputy in the Cape Town office of the National Prosecuting Authority. My daughters have both just finished matric. Maria is an extraordinarily gifted singer herself and is studying a BSc degree in Human Life Sciences at Stellenbosch University.

Frances is studying Psychology and Philosophy at UCT, although her first love is art. She is quite the most phenomenally gifted visual artist and painter. My son, Karl, who is in his second last year of school, is a keen sports fan. He is a promising young golfer and a walking encyclopaedia on football and Formula One racing. He plans to study a commercial degree after school at Stellenbosch.

You clearly have a soft spot for animals. 

I love all living creatures except snakes, which give me the creeps! Elephants are by far my favourites. On the domestic front we have five four-legged children in addition to our three bipedal specimens. We have two cats, Espresso and Freddie, and three dogs. Abby and Penny have been with us for a while and Spud is our latest addition, whom we adopted from the SPCA two months ago.

Where is home?

My heart lives wherever my family is. Most of the time that is in the Marina da Gama in Muizenberg. Despite my European ancestry and heritage, which I am very proud of, I am a native of Africa. I regard myself as much a child of the continent as every other one of her creatures. The African wilderness, the mountains, the veldt and the bush, especially the bush, are my first love. It is where my soul resides and that is my spiritual home.

Many people say they will be vaccinated “over their dead bodies”. What is your message to them?

I fail to see the point of entering into the “To Vax or not to Vax” debate.  I regard myself as incredibly fortunate to have received the vaccine and I will ensure each one of my family and loved ones is vaccinated too.