Wiegand was born in
Liège, where his mother Josephine Wiegand died on 11 January 1897, aged around 83. At the age of seven, he was organist for the Church of St Giles (elsewhere spelled St Gilles). From the age of ten he studied at the
Royal Conservatoire where, amongst other prizes, he was awarded first prize for organ playing on 12 August 1867 and first prize for piano playing on 10 August 1868. He taught at the Conservatorium for six years, then won a
bursary to study under
Alphonse Mailly in
Brussels. Between 1878 and 1890 he gave recitals throughout France, Germany, Holland, Belgium and Britain, many at the
Antwerp International Exposition and in London. an option, should Wiegand be unavailable. Wiegand arrived by the
RMS Orizaba on 23 June, 1891, and, with Madame Wiegand, eventually settled in "Villa Mozart", on the Pyrmont Bridge Road. ... he is an executant of the highest order. His pedalling is magnificent. He has the monster organ completely under his control, and seems to delight in unfolding its varied resources. His judgment in the use of the many stops is very good; a strong leaning is evident towards the
vox humana and the
voix celeste ... Wiegand is essentially a concert organist, using the organ as an orchestra, and adapting overtures, operas, and other music composed for various instruments for performance on this, the king of instruments. In March 1896 the Council approved Wiegand's request for five months' leave on full pay, for certain improvements to the organ carried out in his absence. In July, during a review of financial commitments, a move was made to rescind that approval. Prior to his leaving for Europe, Wiegand gave concerts at
St Patrick's Church and St Benedict's and the Town Hall. Following his return to Sydney in mid-December by the
steamer Ville de la Clotat, Wiegand repeated his opinion that the Town Hall organ was the "best in the world". His holiday had been spoiled by the sickness of his son, and by petty jealousies exhibited by organists at some of the cities he visited. In 1900 Wiegand began a series of civic concerts on Wednesday and Saturday afternoons, in which pieces for organ alternated with solos by recognised artists, calculated to appeal to a wider public for whom purely instrumental music has little appeal. After a month or so, cracks developed in the relationship between organist and Council. On several occasions, Council imposed variations in the regular schedule of concert times and dates, resulting in a marked drop in attendance. Further, the selection of guest appearances was taken out of Wiegand's hands, resulting in additional costs for no improvement of takings. He set out his grievances in a letter to the Mayor and Council, The Mayor,
Sir Matthew Harris MLA, supported by the aldermen, suspended the organist for insubordination, appointing one Sykes in his place. His farewell appearance at the Town Hall on 7 July 1900 was introduced by his agent and friend E. Lewis Scott to an overcrowded hall of well-wishers. Gifts were exchanged and Wiegand played on the organ for the last time: his "Storm Idyll" followed by a sequence of tunes illustrating his coming trip to Paris, London and America. His successor as Sydney City Organist was the Australian-born
Arthur John Mason who occupied the stool from 1901 to 1907.
Last years M. and Mme Wiegand left Australia for Europe by the
Armand Behic on 9 July 1900. He played first at Albert Hall, Sheffield, on 8 September 1900, followed by numerous performances throughout England, Scotland and Ireland; his last performance in the British Isles was at
St Nicholas Church, Sutton, London, on 18 December 1902. when he was suffering greatly but postponed hospitalization to fulfil that obligation. He had also agreed to perform on the immense new
George Jardine & Son organ at the
St. Louis Exhibition, but his death intervened: ==Recognition==