Ulf Schirmer (born 1959) is a German conductor and opera house administrator. Born in Eschenhausen,

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

, Schirmer studied at the

Bremen Bremen ( Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state cons ...

Conservatory, and also at the

Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg The Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg is one of the larger universities of music in Germany. It was founded 1950 as ''Staatliche Hochschule für Musik'' (Public college of music) on the base of the former private acting school of Annem ...

, with

György Ligeti György Sándor Ligeti (; ; 28 May 1923 – 12 June 2006) was a Hungarian-Austrian composer of contemporary classical music. He has been described as "one of the most important avant-garde composers in the latter half of the twentieth century ...

Christoph von Dohnányi Christoph von Dohnányi (; born 8 September 1929) is a German conductor. Biography Youth and World War II Dohnányi was born in Berlin, Germany to Hans von Dohnanyi, a German jurist of Hungarian ancestry, and Christine Bonhoeffer. His uncle ...

and

Horst Stein Horst Walter Stein (born 2 May 1928 in Elberfeld, Germany; died 27 July 2008 in Vandœuvres, Switzerland) was a German conductor. Biography Stein's father was a mechanic. At school in Frankfurt, he studied piano, oboe, and singing. Late ...

. He worked as an assistant to

Lorin Maazel Lorin Varencove Maazel (, March 6, 1930 – July 13, 2014) was an American conductor, violinist and composer. He began conducting at the age of eight and by 1953 had decided to pursue a career in music. He had established a reputation in th ...

and conducted at the Wiener Staatsoper productions of

Luciano Berio Luciano Berio (24 October 1925 – 27 May 2003) was an Italian composer noted for his experimental work (in particular his 1968 composition ''Sinfonia'' and his series of virtuosic solo pieces titled ''Sequenza''), and for his pioneering work ...

's '' Un re in ascolto'',

Arnold Schoenberg Arnold Schoenberg or Schönberg (, ; ; 13 September 187413 July 1951) was an Austrian-American composer, music theorist, teacher, writer, and painter. He is widely considered one of the most influential composers of the 20th century. He was as ...

's ''

Erwartung ' (''Expectation''), Op. 17, is a one-act monodrama in four scenes by Arnold Schoenberg to a libretto by . Composed in 1909, it was not premiered until 6 June 1924 in Prague conducted by Alexander Zemlinsky with Marie Gutheil-Schoder as the sop ...

'', and

Alexander Glazunov Alexander Konstantinovich Glazunov; ger, Glasunow (, 10 August 1865 – 21 March 1936) was a Russian composer, music teacher, and conductor of the late Russian Romantic period. He was director of the Saint Petersburg Conservatory between 190 ...

's '' Raymonda''. From 1988 to 1991, Schirmer was

Generalmusikdirektor A music(al) director or director of music is the person responsible for the musical aspects of a performance, production, or organization. This would include the artistic director and usually chief conductor of an orchestra or concert band, the di ...

(GMD) of the city of

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

, serving as artistic director of symphonic concerts and opera and ballet at the

Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden The Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden ('Hessian State Theatre Wiesbaden') is a German theatre located in Wiesbaden, in the German state Hesse. The company produces operas, plays, ballets, musicals and concerts on four stages. Known also as ...

. He conducted Hans Werner Henze's ''

Das verratene Meer ''Das verratene Meer'' (''The Betrayed Sea'') is an opera in two parts and 14 scenes, with music by Hans Werner Henze to a German libretto by Hans-Ulrich Treichel, after Yukio Mishima's novel '' The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea''. Compo ...

'' in 1990. In 1999, he conducted the premiere of

Gerd Kühr Gerd Kühr, also Gerd Kuhr (born 28 December 1952 in Maria Luggau), is an Austrian conductor, composer of classical music and academic teacher. He is known for operas, such as ''Stallerhof'' on a libretto by the author of the play, Franz Xaver K ...

's opera ''Tod und Teufel'' at the Grazer Oper. His other work in opera has included conducting the first staged production of '' Szenen aus dem Leben der Heiligen Johanna'' by

Walter Braunfels Walter Braunfels (; 19 December 1882 – 19 March 1954) was a German composer, pianist, and music educator. Life Walter Braunfels was born in Frankfurt. His first music teacher was his mother, the great-niece of the composer Louis Spohr. He c ...

, at the

Deutsche Oper Berlin The Deutsche Oper Berlin is a German opera company located in the Charlottenburg district of Berlin. The resident building is the country's second largest opera house (after Munich's) and also home to the Berlin State Ballet. Since 2004, the D ...

in 2008. Schirmer was appointed Professor at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Hamburg in 2000, teaching musical analysis and musical dramaturgy. From 2006 to 2017, he was chief conductor of the Münchner Rundfunkorchester (Munich Radio Orchestra). Since 2009, Schirmer has been General Music Director of the Oper Leipzig. On 23 March 2011, Schirmer was elected ''Intendant'' of the Oper Leipzig, with an initial five-year term beginning in August 2011, in addition to his title as GMD. He conducted the first Bayreuth staging of Wagner's early opera ''Die Feen'' in 2013. In June 2017, Oper Leipzig announced the extension of Schirmer's contract as ''Intendant'' through the 2021-2022 season. Outside of Germany, Schirmer was Principal Conductor of the Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra from 1995 to 1998.

Recordings

Schirmer's commercial recordings include the following: * Joseph Beer: '' Polnische Hochzeit'' (CPO) *

Alban Berg Alban Maria Johannes Berg ( , ; 9 February 1885 – 24 December 1935) was an Austrian composer of the Second Viennese School. His compositional style combined Romantic lyricism with the twelve-tone technique. Although he left a relatively sm ...

: ''

Lulu Lulu may refer to: Companies * LuLu, an early automobile manufacturer * Lulu.com, an online e-books and print self-publishing platform, distributor, and retailer * Lulu Hypermarket, a retail chain in Asia * Lululemon Athletica or simply Lulu, ...

'' (Chandos) *

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

: ''

Trouble in Tahiti ''Trouble in Tahiti'' is a one-act opera in seven scenes composed by Leonard Bernstein with an English libretto by the composer. It is the darkest among Bernstein's "musicals", and one of only two for which he wrote the words and the music. (He ...

'' (BR-Klassik) *

Leo Fall Leopold Fall (2 February 187316 September 1925) was an Austrian Kapellmeister and composer of operettas. Life Born in Olmütz (Olomouc), Leo (or Leopold) Fall was taught by his father Moritz Fall (1848–1922), a bandmaster and composer, who sett ...

: ''Die Dollarprizessin'' (CPO) *

Charles Gounod Charles-François Gounod (; ; 17 June 181818 October 1893), usually known as Charles Gounod, was a French composer. He wrote twelve operas, of which the most popular has always been ''Faust (opera), Faust'' (1859); his ''Roméo et Juliette'' (18 ...

: ''Cinq-Mars'' (Palazzetto Bru Zane Ediciones Singulares) * Engelbert Humperdinck: ''

Dornröschen ''Dornröschen'' (''Sleeping Beauty'') is a 1902 opera by Engelbert Humperdinck. The libretto, based on the story of Sleeping Beauty, was by fairy tale writer Elisabeth Ebeling and Bertha Lehrmann-Filhés, mother of , with a dialogue version b ...

'' (CPO) *

Franz Lehár Franz Lehár ( ; hu, Lehár Ferenc ; 30 April 1870 – 24 October 1948) was an Austro-Hungarian composer. He is mainly known for his operettas, of which the most successful and best known is ''The Merry Widow'' (''Die lustige Witwe''). Life a ...

: **''Das Fürstenkind'' (CPO) ** ''Das Land des Lächelns'' (CPO) ** ''

Der Zarewitsch ''Der Zarewitsch'' (''The Tsarevich'') is an operetta in three acts by Franz Lehár. The German libretto by and Bela Jenbach is based on the play of the same name by Polish author Gabriela Zapolska. One of his later operettas, Lehár composed t ...

'' (CPO) ** ''Friederike'' (CPO) ** ''

Giuditta ''Giuditta'' is an operatic ' (German for ''musical comedy'') in five scenes, with music by Franz Lehár and a German libretto, by and Fritz Löhner-Beda. Scored for a large orchestra, it was Lehár's last and most ambitious work, written on a l ...

'' (CPO) ** ''Paganini'' (CPO) ** '' Schön is die Welt'' (CPO) *

Albert Lortzing Gustav Albert Lortzing (23 October 1801 – 21 January 1851) was a German composer, librettist, actor and singer. He is considered to be the main representative of the German ''Spieloper'', a form similar to the French ''opéra comique'', which ...

: ''Regina'' (CPO) *

Bohuslav Martinů Bohuslav Jan Martinů (; December 8, 1890 – August 28, 1959) was a Czech composer of modern classical music. He wrote 6 symphonies, 15 operas, 14 ballet scores and a large body of orchestral, chamber, vocal and instrumental works. He be ...

: '' The Greek Passion'' (Koch Schwann) *

Otto Nicolai Carl Otto Ehrenfried Nicolai (9 June 1810 – 11 May 1849) was a German composer, conductor, and one of the founders of the Vienna Philharmonic. Nicolai is best known for his operatic version of William Shakespeare, Shakespeare's comedy '' ...

: ''

Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' (German: ''Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor'') is an opera in three acts by Otto Nicolai to a German libretto by Salomon Hermann Mosenthal based on the play ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' by William Shakespeare. The ...

'' (CPO) *

Carl Nielsen Carl August Nielsen (; 9 June 1865 – 3 October 1931) was a Danish composer, conductor and violinist, widely recognized as his country's most prominent composer. Brought up by poor yet musically talented parents on the island of Funen, he ...

** '' Maskarade'' (Decca) ** ''Saul en David'' (Chandos) *

Camille Saint-Saëns Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns (; 9 October 183516 December 1921) was a French composer, organist, conductor and pianist of the Romantic music, Romantic era. His best-known works include Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso (1863), the Piano C ...

: ''Proserpine'' (Palazzetto Bru Zane Ediciones Singulares) *

Richard Strauss Richard Georg Strauss (; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer, conductor, pianist, and violinist. Considered a leading composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras, he has been described as a successor of Richard Wag ...

**'' Capriccio'' (Decca) **'' Feuersnot'' (CPO) **''

Intermezzo In music, an intermezzo (, , plural form: intermezzi), in the most general sense, is a composition which fits between other musical or dramatic entities, such as acts of a play or movements of a larger musical work. In music history, the term ha ...

'' (CPO) *

Carl Maria von Weber Carl Maria Friedrich Ernst von Weber (18 or 19 November 17865 June 1826) was a German composer, conductor, virtuoso pianist, guitarist, and critic who was one of the first significant composers of the Romantic era. Best known for his operas, ...

: '' Sylvana'' (CPO) * Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari: '' Le donne curiose'' (CPO) His recording of

Karl Amadeus Hartmann Karl Amadeus Hartmann (2 August 1905 – 5 December 1963) was a German composer. Sometimes described as the greatest German symphonist of the 20th century, he is now largely overlooked, particularly in English-speaking countries. Life Born in ...

's ''Des Simplicius Simplicissimus Jugend'' was awarded the in 2010 in the category opera of the 20th/21st century. The work, commissioned by the Bayerischer Rundfunk, was performed in its reconstructed first version, with soloists

Camilla Nylund Camilla Nylund (born 11 June 1968) is a Finnish operatic soprano. She appears internationally in lyric-dramatic roles such as Beethoven's Leonore, Verdi's Elisabetta, and Wagner's Elisabeth and Sieglinde. She is especially known for portrayin ...

and

Christian Gerhaher Christian Gerhaher (born 24 July 1969, in Straubing) is a German baritone and bass singer in opera and concert, particularly known as a Lieder singer. Career Christian Gerhaher studied with Paul Kuën and Raimund Grumbach at the Hochschule ...

. Other recordings include the violin concerto by

Max Reger Johann Baptist Joseph Maximilian Reger (19 March 187311 May 1916) was a German composer, pianist, organist, conductor, and academic teacher. He worked as a concert pianist, as a musical director at the Leipzig University Church, as a professor a ...

with soloist

Ulf Wallin Ulf Wallin is a Swedish classical violinist and professor at the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin. Life Born in Växjö, Wallin studied at the Royal College of Music, Stockholm and at the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kuns ...

References

External links

* *
Official website of Ulf Schirmer

German-language biography from Munich Radio Orchestra website

Bayerischer Rundfunk Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR; "Bavarian Broadcasting") is a public-service radio and television broadcaster, based in Munich, capital city of the Free State of Bavaria in Germany. BR is a member organization of the ARD consortium of public broadcas ...

Ulf Schirmer
Munzinger
Oper Leipzig profile of Ulf Schirmer
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schirmer, Ulf 1959 births Living people People from Diepholz (district) German male conductors (music) Academic staff of the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg 21st-century German conductors (music) 21st-century German male musicians Bayerischer Rundfunk people