Hans Maier and Bertold Hummel met as students in Freiburg im Breisgau in the early 1950s. From 1957 onwards, both worked part-time at the nursery school teacher training college there: Maier in the subject of hymnology, and Hummel as a music teacher. Their mutual student, Adelheid Dilly (1938–2026), married the newly habilitated professor of political science in 1962. Their paths crossed again in 1973 during the conversion of the Würzburg State Conservatory into a university of music. They met in their new roles – as vice-president and Minister of Culture – at meetings and public events. Their friendly relationship was quickly re-established. Through their families (the Maiers had six daughters, the Hummels six sons), they maintained loose contact, exchanging letters and making music together on special occasions. In the 1970s, Maier invited Hummel to the high-profile discussion group “Church and Art” and sought his advice on music policy decisions.

Hans Maier takes a keen interest in Hummel’s compositional work, studies his latest organ compositions, and attends performances of Hummel’s works in Munich with his wife, as well as the world premiere of the oratorio “Der Schrein der Märtyrer” in Würzburg. The couple also attended the composer’s Requiem at Würzburg Cathedral. In memory of his friend, Hans Maier took on the patronage of the “Bertold Hummel Competition” for students of European music academies until 2022, personally presenting the prizes even at the age of 86.
They express their mutual admiration in the publications A Plea for the Original Oeuvre of the Contemporary Composer Bertold Hummel and Encounters with Hans Maier.