Georges Bizet | Carmen
Thu, Oct. 10, 2024, 7.00 pm - 10.15 pm
Cast
Musikalische Leitung
Sesto Quatrini
Musical Direction
Sesto Quatrini
Birthplace:
Rome, Italy
Studies:
Conducting, composition and trumpet at the “A. Casella” Conservatory in L’Aquila and the Civica Scuola di Musica “Claudio Abbado” in Milan
Repertoire:
La traviata, Rigoletto, L’elisir d’amore, Il barbiere di Siviglia, Le nozze di Figaro, Giulietta e Romeo, Otello (Verdi and Rossini), Manon Lescaut, Il turco in Italia, Norma, Les Contes d’Hoffmann, Der Rosenkavalier, La Juive, Don Carlo, et al.
Career stages:
2018 to 2023 Artistic Director at the Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre (LNOBT)
2015 to 2016 assistant conductor to Fabio Luisi at the New York Metropolitan Opera and at the Festival della Valle d’Itria
Stages:
LNOBT, Festival della Valle d'Itria, Teatro La Fenice, Teatro Municipale di Piacenza, Alte Oper Frankfurt, Teatro Comunale di Bologna, Ópera de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Elbphilharmonie, Donizetti Opera, Teatro Regio di Parma, Teatro Regio di Torino, Opernhaus Zürich, Royal Opera House, Gran Teatre del Liceu, Deutsche Oper Berlin, et al.
Cooperation with orchestras:
London Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse, Danish National Symphony Orchestra, Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, Latvian National Symphony Orchestra, Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra, Orquestra Sinfónica Portuguesa, the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Russia at the Bolshoi Theatre, Orquesta Filarmónica de Gran Canaria, Orquesta Sinfónica de Tenerife, Orchestre Symphonique Saint-Étienne Loire, Frankfurter Opern und Museumsorchester, Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie, Orchestra Filarmonica Italiana, Orchestra Internazionale d'Italia, Orchestra Haydn di Bolzano, Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano, et al.
Find further information about Sesto Quatrini here.
Performances
photo: Fabrizio Sansoni
Chor
Christian Günther
Associate Chorus Master
Christian Günther
Birthplace:
Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
Studies:
Conducting at University of Music and Performing Arts Munich, conducting lessons with Neeme Järvi, Jorma Panula and Gianluigi Gelmetti
Relation to the Hamburg State Opera:
Assistant Chorus Master at Hamburg State Opera since the 2019/20 season
Career stages:
Assistant of the Chorus Master at Hamburg State Opera (2008-2019), regular guest appearances at NDR-Chorus (since 2018), Guest Chorus Master at Zürich Opera House (2018), Assistant of Eberhard Friedrich with the Chorus of the Bayreuth Festival (2017), Guest engagements at Music Festival Bremen, at Festival der Projektgruppe Neue Musik Bremen as well as at Oh Ton-Ensemble Oldenburg, Leader of the Ensemble “Atelier Neue Musik”, Lectureship at the Hochschule für Künste Bremen (since 2007), Associate Chorus Master and Leader of the children's chorus at Theater Bremen (2002-2007), 2nd Capellmeister at Theater Bremen (2005-2007), Conductor of the Ensemble “piano possible” Munich (1996-2007), Guest répétiteur at Stuttgart State Theater, Theater am Gärtnerplatz in Munich and at the Biennale in Munich
Cooperation with choruses:
Chorus of Hamburg State Opera, NDR Chorus, Children's chorus of Theater Bremen, et al.
Performances
Don José
Vittorio Grigolo
Tenor
Vittorio Grigolo
Birthplace:
Arezzo, Italy
Studies:
Sistine Chapel’s Schola Puerorum cantorum, under the direction of Maestro Domenico Bartolucci
Prizes:
Premio Caruso, Tiberini d'Oro (2015), Distinguished Artistic Leadership Award - The Atlantic Council (2016), NIAF Special Achievement award (2017).
Important parts:
Rodolfo (La Bohème), Duke of Mantua (Rigoletto), Mario Cavaradossi (Tosca), Werther (Werther), Chevalier des Grieux (Manon), Don José (Carmen), Manrico (Il Trovatore), et al.
Stages:
Metropolitan Opera New York, Royal Opera House London, Opéra national de Paris, Teatro alla Scala di Milano, Teatro San Carlo di Napoli, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Gran Teatre del Liceu, Wiener Staatsoper et al.
Cooperations with directors:
Franco Zeffirelli, Robert Carsen, Yannis Kokkos, Laurent Pelly, Damiano Michieletto, Davide Livermore.
Cooperations with conductors:
Riccardo Chailly, Lorin Maazel, Zubin Mehta, Riccardo Muti, Myung-Whun Chung, Daniel Oren and Antonio Pappano
Performances
Escamillo
Chao Deng
Bass-baritone
Chao Deng
Birthplace:
Tianjin, China
Studies:
Vocal studies in Tianjin, China; diploma in voice at the Hochschule für Musik Würzburg with Cheryl Studer; master studies with Christian Elsner and in the Lied class of Gerold Huber and opera studio at the Hochschule für Musik Weimar with Prof. Dr. Michail Lanskoi; master class exam at the Hochschule für Musik Dresden with KS Prof. Matthias Henneberg.
Master classes:
With Liang Li, Michaelis Doukakis, John Norris, KS Camilla Nylund, KS Helen Donath, KS Brigitte Fassbaender, Sonja Prina, Alberto Triola, Catherine Foster, Georg Zeppenfeld, Juliane Banse, Roberto Scandiuzzi, KS Deborah Polaski.
Awards:
Prize for Opera Singing of the Concerto Foundation Würzburg (2015), Prize Winner of the International Singing Competition of the Chamber Opera Schloss Rheinsberg (2014), Scholarship Holder of the Richard Wagner Association Bayreuth Festival (2014), et al.
Relation to the State Opera:
Ensemble member of the Hamburg State Opera since the 2020/21 season.
Important roles:
Figaro (Le Nozze di Figaro), Escamillo (Carmen), Alidoro (La Cenerentola), Peter (Hänsel und Gretel), Fasolt (Das Rheingold), Comte Capulet (Roméo et Juliette), Häuptling Abendwind (Häuptling Abendwind), Ramfis (Aida), Gianni Schicchi/Betto di Signa (Gianni Schicchi), Papageno/Sprecher /2. Geharnischte (Die Zauberflöte), Frank (Die Fledermaus), Don Fernando (Fidelio), Schaunard (La Bohème), Herr Fluth (Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor), Kilian/Ottokar (Der Freischütz), Buonafede (Il mondo della luna), Förster (Das schlaue Füchslein), Le Duc (Romeo et Juliette), Angelotti (Tosca), Colas (Bastien et Bastienne), Priamus (Les Troyens), Antonio (Le nozze di Figaro), Marullo/Ceprano (Rigoletto), Zuniga (Carmen), De Retz (Les Huguenots), Lord Syndham (Zar und Zimmermann), Spielmann (Königskinder), Journalist (Lulu), Osias, Oberpriester (Judith), et al.
Stages:
Hamburg State Opera, Opernhaus Zürich, Bavarian State Opera, Dresden Semper Opera, German Opera on the Rhine, Dresden Philharmonic, Braunschweig State Theater, German National Theater Weimar, Dresden State Operetta, Erfurt Theater, Weimarhalle, Saar Music Festival, Shanghai Opera House, et al.
Collaboration with directors:
Peter Konwitschny, Lydia Steier, Barrie Kosky, Mariame Clément,Yona Kim, Manfred Weiß, Sabine Hartmannshenn, Hasko Weber, Anette Leistenschneider, Guy Montavon, Andrea Moses, et al.
Collaboration with conductors:
Kent Nagano, Sebastian Weigle, Stefano Ranzani, John Fiore, Stefan Soltész, Xu Zhong, Daniele Callegari, Speranza Scappucci, Giampaolo Bisanti, Ivan Repušić, Riccardo Minasi, Giacomo Sagripanti, Roberto Rizzi Brignoli, Thomas Leo Cadenbach, Moritz Gnann, Felix Krieger, Christoph Gedschold, Kristiina Poska, Tomáš Netopil, Antonino Fogliani, Omer Meir Wellber, Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider, Stefan Lano, Martin Hoff, Georg Fritzsch, et al.
Find further information about Chao Deng here.
Performances
photo: Jie Chen
Remendado
Peter Galliard
Tenor
Peter Galliard
Birthplace:
Chur, Switzerland
Studies:
With Rico Peterelli, Conservatory in Feldkirch with Maria Eibenschütz, at the Mozarteum Salzburg with Rudolf Knoll
Prizes:
First Prize at the International Mozart Competition (1985), Förderpreis of the Kanton Graubünden (1987), Dr. Wilhelm-Oberdörffer-Preis of the Stiftung zur Förderung der Hamburgischen Staatsoper (1989), honored by the Hamburg Senate with the title of “Kammersänger” (2017)
Relation to the Hamburg State Opera:
Ensemble member of the Hamburg State Opera since 1986/87
Important parts:
Tamino (Die Zauberflöte), Jaquino (Fidelio), Cassio (Otello), Froh and Loge (Das Rheingold), Alfred and Eisenstein (Die Fledermaus), Peter Iwanow (Zar und Zimmermann), Bardolfo (Falstaff), Hauptmann (Wozzeck), Knusperhexe (Hänsel und Gretel), Lenski (Eugen Onegin), Narraboth (Salome), Don Basilio (Le Nozze di Figaro), Prinz and Hauptmann (Lulu), L’Aumonier (Dialogues des Carmélites), Melot (Tristan und Isolde), Walther von der Vogelweide (Tannhäuser), Wolfgang Capito (Mathis der Maler), Goro (Madama Butterfly), Red Whiskers (Billy Budd), Dämon (L’Upupa und der Triumph der Sohnesliebe), Bischof von Budoja (Palestrina), Mime (Siegfried), et al.
Stages:
Hamburgische Staatsoper, Lucerne Festival, Salzburger Osterfestspiele, Opéra National de Paris, Enescu Festival in Bukarest, Staatsoper Unter den Linden Berlin, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Oper Frankfurt, Semperoper Dresden, Oper Leipzig, Staatstheater Nürnberg, et al.
Cooperation with directors:
Claus Guth, August Everding, Johannes Schaaf, Harry Kupfer, Peter Konwitschny, Johannes Erath, Renaud Doucet, Georg Schmiedleitner, Stefan Herheim, Herbert Wernicke, Calixto Bieito, Willy Decker, Paul-Georg Dittrich, et al.
Cooperation with conductors:
Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Christian Thielemann, Ingo Metzmacher, Simone Young, Kirill Petrenko, Kent Nagano, Lawrence Foster, Gerrit Prießnitz, Marcus Bosch, Philippe Jordan, Paolo Carignani, Vaclav Luks, et al.
Performances
- Carmen
- Tosca
- Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute)
- Mitridate, re di Ponto
- Eugene Onegin
- La Traviata
- Le Nozze di Figaro
photo: Martina Cyman
Dancaïro
Nicholas Mogg
Baritone
Nicholas Mogg
Birthplace:
Manchester, United Kingdom
Studies:
International Opera Studio, Hamburg State Opera; National Opera Studio, London; Royal Academy of Music, London; Clare College, University Cambridge
Masterclass:
with Sir Simon Keenlyside, Christian Gerhaher, Malcolm Martineau, Brigitte Fassbaender, Gerald Finley, Sir Thomas Allen
Relation to the Hamburg State Opera:
Ensemble member of the Hamburg State Opera since the 2022/23 season
Was Member of the International Opera Studio of the Hamburg State Opera from 2019/20 to 2022/23
Prizes:
Royal Over-Seas League Singers’ Section; Richard Lewis/Jean Shanks Award
Roles:
Don Giovanni (Don Giovanni), Guglielmo (Così fan tutte), Ned Keene (Peter Grimes), Aeneas (Dido and Aeneas), Dandini (La Cenerentola), Steward (Flight), Herr Peachum (Die Dreigroschenoper), Melisso (Alcina), Jupiter (Orphée aux Enfers), et al.
Stages:
Hamburg State Opera, Glyndebourne Festival Opera, Wigmore Hall, Philharmonie de Paris, Het Concertgebouw, Festival Aix, Elbphilharmonie, Theater Lübeck
Cooperation with directors:
Keith Warner, Herbert Fritsch, Tim Albery, Orpha Phelan, Richard Jones
Cooperation with conductors:
Robin Ticciati, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Ton Koopman, Sir Roger Norrington, Yoel Gamzou, Francesco Ivan Ciampa, Alan Gilbert, Kent Nagano
Performances
- Carmen
- Boris Godunov
- Jubiläumsgala: 30 Jahre Internationales Opernstudio
- La Bohème
- Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute)
- 2nd chamber concert
- Manon
- „Muss denn in diesem Land immer alles politisch sein?“
- Les Contes d'Hoffmann
- Don Pasquale
- La Fanciulla del West (The Girl of the West)
- Salome
- Così fan tutte
photo: linden.shots
Zuniga
Han Kim
Bass
Han Kim
Birthplace:
Pohang, South Korea
Studies:
Bachelor, Seoul National University with Kwangchul Youn; Master Vocal performance, Hochschule für Musik Karlsruhe with Christian Elsner; Soloist’s Diploma Vocal performance, Hochschule für Musik Karlsruhe with Christian Elsner
Master class:
with Ann Murray, Hochschule für Musik Karlsruhe (2019), with David Selig, Hochschule für Musik Karlsruhe (2019)
Relation to the Hamburg State Opera:
Ensemble member of the Hamburg State Opera since the 2023/24 season
Was Member of the International Opera Studio of the Hamburg State Opera 2021/22 and 2022/23
Important parts:
Figaro (Le nozze di Figaro), Leporello/Masetto (Don Giovanni), Don Alfonso (Così fan tutte), Sprecher (Die Zauberflöte), Il conte Rodolfo (La sonambula), Don Basilio (Il barbiere di Siviglia), Don Fernando (Fidelio), Colline (La Bohème), Zuniga (Carmen)
Stages:
Theater Heidelberg
Cooperation with directors:
Sonja Trebes
Cooperation with conductors:
Dietger Holm
Performances
- Carmen
- Tosca
- Der Freischütz
- La Bohème
- Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute)
- Manon
- La Fanciulla del West (The Girl of the West)
- Parsifal
photo: Johannes Xaver Zepplin
Moralès
Nicholas Mogg
Baritone
Nicholas Mogg
Birthplace:
Manchester, United Kingdom
Studies:
International Opera Studio, Hamburg State Opera; National Opera Studio, London; Royal Academy of Music, London; Clare College, University Cambridge
Masterclass:
with Sir Simon Keenlyside, Christian Gerhaher, Malcolm Martineau, Brigitte Fassbaender, Gerald Finley, Sir Thomas Allen
Relation to the Hamburg State Opera:
Ensemble member of the Hamburg State Opera since the 2022/23 season
Was Member of the International Opera Studio of the Hamburg State Opera from 2019/20 to 2022/23
Prizes:
Royal Over-Seas League Singers’ Section; Richard Lewis/Jean Shanks Award
Roles:
Don Giovanni (Don Giovanni), Guglielmo (Così fan tutte), Ned Keene (Peter Grimes), Aeneas (Dido and Aeneas), Dandini (La Cenerentola), Steward (Flight), Herr Peachum (Die Dreigroschenoper), Melisso (Alcina), Jupiter (Orphée aux Enfers), et al.
Stages:
Hamburg State Opera, Glyndebourne Festival Opera, Wigmore Hall, Philharmonie de Paris, Het Concertgebouw, Festival Aix, Elbphilharmonie, Theater Lübeck
Cooperation with directors:
Keith Warner, Herbert Fritsch, Tim Albery, Orpha Phelan, Richard Jones
Cooperation with conductors:
Robin Ticciati, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Ton Koopman, Sir Roger Norrington, Yoel Gamzou, Francesco Ivan Ciampa, Alan Gilbert, Kent Nagano
Performances
- Carmen
- Boris Godunov
- Jubiläumsgala: 30 Jahre Internationales Opernstudio
- La Bohème
- Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute)
- 2nd chamber concert
- Manon
- „Muss denn in diesem Land immer alles politisch sein?“
- Les Contes d'Hoffmann
- Don Pasquale
- La Fanciulla del West (The Girl of the West)
- Salome
- Così fan tutte
photo: linden.shots
Carmen
Ginger Costa Jackson
Mezzo-Soprano
Ginger Costa Jackson
Birthplace:
Palermo, Italy
Studies:
Metropolitan Opera Lindemann Young Artist Development Program
Important parts:
Carmen (Carmen), Rosina (Il Barbiere di Siviglia), Angelina (Cenerentola) Charlotte (Werther), Despina (Cosi Fan Tutte), Dorabella (Cosi Fan Tutte), Cherubino (Le Nozze di Figaro), Bradamante (Alcina), Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni), Andromaca (Ermione), Giulietta (Le Contes d’Hoffmann), Helene (La Belle Helene), Musetta (la Bohème), Maddalena (Rigoletto) Preziosilla (La Forza del Destino), et al.
Stages:
Metropolitan Opera, Opéra National de Paris, Gran Teatre del Liceu, English National Opera, Teatro Petruzzelli, San Francisco Opera, Vancouver Opera, San Diego Opera, A Coruna, Grange Park Opera, Seattle Opera, Los Angeles Opera, Opera Royal de Wallonie-Liège, La Monnaie/De Munt, Tokyo New National Theatre, Opera de Toulon, Washington Concert Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Glimmerglass Opera, Michigan Opera Theatre, et al.
Find further information about Ginger Costa Jackson here.
Performances
photo: Walt Jackson
Micaëla
Narea Son
Soprano
Narea Son
Birthplace:
Seoul, South Korea
Studies:
Bachelor's degree at Seoul National University, master's degree opera and concert exam opera at Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Hamburg
Master class:
with Edita Gruberová, Jaume Aragall, Cheryl Studer, Mariella Devia, Thomas Quastoff, Edda Moser, Brigitte Fassbaender und Joyce DiDonato at Carnegie Hall in New York with Live Stream by Arte TV, et al.
Relation to the Hamburg State Opera:
Ensemble member of the Hamburg State Opera since the 2019/20 season
Was a member of the International Opera Studio of the Hamburg State Opera 2016/17 and 2017/18
Important parts:
Adele (Die Fledermaus), Pamina (Erzittre, feiger Bösewicht!, Neufassung der Zauberflöte von J. Harneit), Marzelline (Fidelio), Zerlina (Don Giovanni), Katze Ivanka ( U.A. Katze Ivanka ), Ljusja (Moskau, Tscherjomuschki ), Marthe, Sorge, Seliger Knabe und Sopran Solo ( Szenen aus Goethes Faust), Javotte (Manon), Echo (Ariadne auf Naxos), Oberto (Alcina), et al.
Stages:
Hamburgische Staatsoper, Theater Bremen, Sejong Center (Seoul Metropolitan Opera), Shanghai Grand Theater, Geumho-Konzerthalle, et al.
Cooperation with directors:
Achim Freyer, Philipp Stölzl, Georges Delnon, Vera Nemirova, David Bösch, BARBE&DOUCET et al.
Cooperation with conductors:
Kent Nagano, Alexander Joel, Johannes Fritzsch, Massimo Zanetti, Christopher Moulds, Renato Palumbo, Axel Kober, Jonathan Darlington, et al.
Performances
photo: Sangdon Lee
Frasquita
Hongping Ruan
Soprano
Hongping Ruan
Birthplace:
Hangzhou, China
Studies:
Studies singing at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg
Prizes:
1st prize at the “Mozart Prize Competition 2023” of the Absalom Foundation
2nd prize at the “Elise Meyer Singing Competition 2023” of the Elise Meyer Foundation
3rd song duo prize and special prize for song duo at the “Gustav Mahler Competition 2024” of the ROCHNA Foundation
1st prize at the “International singing Competition Lav Mirski” 2024 in Croatia
Important parts:
Frasquita (Carmen)
Stages:
Shenzhen Dance & Opera Theatre
Cooperations with directors:
Petra Deidda, Robin Guarino
Cooperations with conductors:
Vladimir Conta
Performances
photo: Taizhi Shao
Mercédès
Kady Evanyshyn
Mezzo-Soprano
Kady Evanyshyn
Birthplace:
Winnipeg, Canada
Studies:
Bachelor and Master of Music, The Juilliard School
Awards/Competitions:
First Prize of the New Orleans District and Second Prize of the Gulf Coast Region at the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition (2023), Award from the Gerda Lissner Lieder/Song Competition (2017/18), Winner of the John Erskine Prize at The Juilliard School (2017) and the Tudor Bowl at the Winnipeg Music Festival (2015)
Masterclasses:
Lioba Braun, Brigitte Fassbänder, Elena Garanča, Thomas Hampson, Malcom Martineau, Anne Sofie von Otter, Bo Skovhus, Emmanuel Villaume, and others
Relation to the Hamburg State Opera:
Ensemble member of the Hamburg State Opera since the 2022/2023 season
Was member of the International Opera Studio of the Hamburg State Opera from 2019/20 to 2022/23
Important parts:
Annio (La clemenza di Tito), Cherubino (Le nozze di Figaro), Charlotte (Werther), Hänsel (Hänsel und Gretel), Siébel (Faust), Zweite Dame (Die Zauberflöte), Mercédès (Carmen), Meg Page (Falstaff), Tisbé (La Cenerentola), Second Woman (Dido and Aeneas), Fjodor (Boris Godunov), Frau Reich (Die Lustigen Weiber von Windsor), Phèdre (Hippolyte et Aricie), and others
Stages:
Opernhaus Zürich, Bregenzer Festspiele, Carnegie Hall, Opéra Royal de Versailles, Opera Holland Park, Verbier Festival, Aspen Music Festival
Song:
World Premiere of “Drei Grabschriften” (Stefano Gervasoni), Performances of “Animus II” (Druckman), “Folk Songs” (Berio) and “Liebeslieder Walzer” (Brahms), Competitor of the 2019 Wigmore Hall/Independent Opera Song Competition
Cooperation with Directors:
Edward Berkeley, Frank Castorf, Georges Delnon, James Darrah, Axel Ransich, Dmitri Tcherniakov, Jana Vetten, Stephen Wadsworth
Cooperation with Conductors:
Nicolas André, Paolo Arrivabeni, Giampaolo Bisanti, Daniele Callegari, William Christie, Jane Glover, Alexander Joel, Francesco Lanzillotta, Claire Levacher, Jeffrey Milarsky, Evelino Pidò, Teddy Poll, Avi Stein, Stephen Stubbs
Find further information about Kady Evanyshyn here.
Performances
photo: Brinkhoff/Mögenburg
Kinderchor
Alsterspatzen – Kinder- und Jugendchor der Hamburgischen Staatsoper
Alsterspatzen – Kinder- und Jugendchor der Hamburgischen Staatsoper
Die Alsterspatzen bezaubern seit vielen Jahrzehnten als Lebkuchen- oder Straßenkinder, als Ministranten und Elfenchor. In der Spielzeit 2019/20 übernahm Luiz de Godoy die Leitung des Kinder- und Jugendchores der Hamburgischen Staatsoper. Die jungen Sängerinnen und Sänger stehen in Produktionen wie „Hänsel und Gretel“, „Carmen“ oder „La Bohème“ neben Ensemblemitgliedern und internationalen Gästen auf der großen Bühne der Staatsoper. Darüber hinaus sind sie mit dem Philharmonischen Staatsorchester unter anderem in der Elbphilharmonie und im Rahmen eigener Projekte in der opera stabile zu erleben.
Wir danken der Alster-Hof Melzner-Stiftung für die Unterstützung.
Find further information about Alsterspatzen – Kinder- und Jugendchor der Hamburgischen Staatsoper here.
Performances
- Rathausmarkt Open Air
- Trionfi
- Carmen
- Boris Godunov
- Tosca
- La Bohème
- Hänsel und Gretel (Hansel and Gretel)
- Frühlings Erwachen
photo: Niklas Marc Heinecke
Chor
Chor der Hamburgischen Staatsoper
Chor der Hamburgischen Staatsoper
The chorus members appear on stage at the Hamburg State Opera in a different role almost every night. From one day to the next, they might be sailors, pilgrims or conspirators, then courtiers, hunters, the deranged or the imprisoned. In the role of crusaders in I Lombardi alla prima Crociata they travel to Jerusalem, other nights they are invited to Madama Butterfly's marriage or acclaim Prince Igor. The ladies and gentlemen of the opera chorus demonstrate their artistic prowess, their flexibility, and their love of the stage in every performance.
With a membership around 70, the chorus of the Hamburg State Opera has been one of the world’s best opera choruses for many years. The varied repertoire – almost always in the original language – is multifaceted and includes baroque operas and dramatic operas, major works by Verdi and Wagner as well as contemporary pieces. At the start of the 2013/14 season, Eberhard Friedrich took over the post of Chorus Master.
Performances
- Rathausmarkt Open Air
- Hamburg Theatre Night
- Trionfi
- Carmen
- Tosca
- La clemenza di Tito
- Der Freischütz
- Luisa Miller
- La Bohème
- Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute)
- Der fliegende Holländer
- Manon
- Les Contes d'Hoffmann
- Eugene Onegin
- Don Pasquale
- Rigoletto
- Maria Stuarda
- La Fanciulla del West (The Girl of the West)
- Il trovatore
- Falstaff
- La Traviata
- Parsifal
- Pique Dame
- Die dunkle Seite des Mondes
- Tristan und Isolde (Tristan and Isolde)
- Così fan tutte
- Le Nozze di Figaro
photo: Niklas Marc Heinecke
Orchester
Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg
Orchestra
Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg
The Philharmonic State Orchestra is Hamburg’s largest and oldest orchestra, looking back on many years of musical history. When the “Philharmonic Orchestra” and the “Orchestra of the Hamburg Municipal Theatre” merged in 1934, two tradition-steeped orchestras combined. Philharmonic concerts have been performed in Hamburg since 1828, artists such as Clara Schumann, Franz Liszt and Johannes Brahms being regular guests of the Philharmonic Society. The history of the opera company goes back even further: Hamburg has been home to musical theatre since 1678, even if a regular opera or theatre orchestra was only formed later. To this day, the Philharmonic State Orchestra has embodied the sound of the Hansa City, a concert and opera orchestra in one.
During its long history, the orchestra encountered great artist personalities. Apart from composers of the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, such as Telemann, Tchaikovsky, Strauss, Mahler, Prokofiev and Stravinsky, since the 20th century chief conductors such as Karl Muck, Joseph Keilberth, Eugen Jochum, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Horst Stein, Aldo Ceccato, Christoph von Dohnányi, Gerd Albrecht, Ingo Metzmacher and Simone Young have shaped the orchestra’s sound. Renowned conductors of the pre-war era such as Otto Klemperer, Wilhelm Furtwängler, Bruno Walter, Karl Böhm and Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt gave brilliant performances, as did outstanding conductors of our times: suffice it to mention Christian Thielemann, Semyon Bychkov, Kirill Petrenko, Adam Fischer and Sir Roger Norrington.
Starting with the 2015/2016 season, Kent Nagano has taken on the position of Hamburg’s General Music Director and Chief Conductor of the Philharmonic State Orchestra and the Hamburg State Opera and since June 2023 also its honorary conductor. In his first season Kent Nagano initiated a new project, the Philharmonic Academy, focusing on experimentation and chamber music. In 2016, Nagano and the Philharmonic toured South America, followed by concert tours to Spain and Japan in 2019, and in the spring of 2023, the Philharmonic State Orchestra made its debut at New York's Carnegie Hall under his direction, which was acclaimed by audiences and the press. Since 2017 Kent Nagano and the Philharmonic State Orchestra have continued the traditional Philharmonic Concerts at the new Elbphilharmonie, for which they commissioned Jörg Widmann to compose the oratorio ARCHE, which was given its world premiere during the hall’s opening festivities. The concert recording has been released by ECM, for which Widmann received the OPUS KLASSIK as Composer of the Year 2019, and ARCHE was performed again in 2023 to great acclaim.
The Philharmonic State Orchestra offers approximately 35 concerts per season and performs more than 240 performances per year at the Hamburg State Opera and the Hamburg Ballet John Neumeier, making it Hamburg’s busiest orchestra. The stylistic bandwidth covered by the 140 musicians, ranging from historically informed performance practice to contemporary works and including concert, opera and ballet repertoire, is unique throughout Germany. Chamber Music has a long tradition at the Philharmonic State Orchestra: what began in 1929 with a concert series for chamber orchestra has been continued since 1968 by a series of chamber music only.
In 2008 Simone Young and the Philharmonic State Orchestra won the Brahms Award of the Schleswig-Holstein Brahms Society. The orchestra has recorded the complete Ring by Wagner as well as the complete symphonies of Johannes Brahms and Anton Bruckner – the latter in the rarely-performed original versions – as well as works by Mahler, Hindemith and Berg, and has released DVDs of opera and ballet productions by Hosokawa, Offenbach, Reimann, Auerbach, J.S. Bach, Puccini, Poulenc and Weber.
The members of the Philharmonic State Orchestra feel equally beholden to Hamburg’s musical tradition and responsible for the city’s artistic future. Since 1978 the musicians have been participating in education programmes in Hamburg’s schools. Today, the orchestra maintains a broad education programme, including school and kindergarten visits, patronage for music projects, introductory events for children and family concerts. The orchestra’s own academy prepares young musicians for their professional careers. The Philharmonic’s musicians thereby make an equally enjoyable and valuable contribution to tomorrow’s music education in the music metropolis of Hamburg.
Performances
- Rathausmarkt Open Air
- 1st Academy Concert - Program I
- 1st Academy Concert - Program II
- 1st Academy Concert - Program III
- 4th Academy Concert
- Trionfi
- Carmen
- The Times Are Racing
- 1st Philharmonic Concert
- Kannst du pfeifen, Johanna
- Boris Godunov
- Special chamber concert
- Tosca
- Jubiläumsgala: 30 Jahre Internationales Opernstudio
- La clemenza di Tito
- Orchesterprobenbesuch
- 2nd Philharmonic Concert
- Don Giovanni
- Jane Eyre
- 3rd Philharmonic Concert
- Elektra
- Der Freischütz
- Luisa Miller
- La Bohème
- Slow Burn
- 4th Philharmonic Concert
- Hänsel und Gretel (Hansel and Gretel)
- Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute)
- The Nutcracker
- New Year's Eve concert
- Der fliegende Holländer
- 5th Philharmonic Concert
- THE ART OF Lise Davidsen
- Die Kreide im Mund des Wolfs
- Ariadne auf Naxos
- Manon
- 6th Philharmonic Concert
- Les Contes d'Hoffmann
- Mitridate, re di Ponto
- Eugene Onegin
- 7th Philharmonic Concert
- PhiSch - das Staatsorchester hautnah...
- Don Pasquale
- Rigoletto
- Maria Stuarda
- La Fanciulla del West (The Girl of the West)
- Il trovatore
- Falstaff
- 8th Philharmonic Concert
- La Traviata
- The Odyssey
- Parsifal
- Pique Dame
- Opening concert of the Hamburg International Music Festival
- Das Tagebuch der Anne Frank
- Romeo and Juliet
- Die dunkle Seite des Mondes
- Tristan und Isolde (Tristan and Isolde)
- 9th Philharmonic Concert
- Salome
- National Youth Ballet
- Nijinsky
- Frühlings Erwachen
- Così fan tutte
- Le Nozze di Figaro
- 10th Philharmonic Concert
- Demian
- Nijinsky Gala L
photo: Foto: Felix Broede