Axel Kober (born 10 February 1970) is a German conductor. Since 2009 he has been the music director of the

Deutsche Oper am Rhein The Deutsche Oper am Rhein (German Opera on the Rhine) is an opera company based in Düsseldorf and Duisburg. The opera also has an associated classical ballet company. Axel Kober has been its music director since 2009. The resident orchestra, t ...

. Kober was born in

Kronach Kronach (; ) is a Town#Germany, town in Upper Franconia, Germany, located in the Franconian Forest area. It is the capital of the Kronach (district), district Kronach. The town is equipped with a nearly complete city wall and Germany's biggest an ...

and studied conducting under Peter Falk and Günther Wich at the Hochschule für Musik Würzburg. His first professional engagement was with the

Mecklenburg State Theatre The Mecklenburg State Theatre () is the principal theatre of Schwerin in Germany. Its main theatre (or ''Großes Haus'') seats 650 people and is used for the performance of plays, opera, musical theatre and ballet. Designed by Georg Daniel, the p ...

in 1994. From 1998 to 2003 he was the chief conductor of the

Theater Dortmund Theater Dortmund is a theatrical organization that produces operas, Musical theatre, musicals, ballets, plays, and concerts in Dortmund, Germany. It was founded as the Stadttheater Dortmund in 1904. Supported by the German Government, the organiz ...

, where he conducted several rarely performed operas, including the German premiere of Charpentier's '' Julien''. Following a 4-year stint at the National Theatre Mannheim (2003–2007) where he served as its chief conductor, and two years as music director of the

Leipzig Opera The Leipzig Opera () is an opera house and opera company located at the Augustusplatz and the Inner City Ring Road at its east side in Leipzig's district Mitte, Germany. History Performances of opera in Leipzig trace back to Singspiel perfo ...

(2007–2009), he was appointed music director of the

. In 2013, the bicentenary of

Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

's birth, Kober made his debut at the

Bayreuth Festival The Bayreuth Festival () is a music festival held annually in Bayreuth, Germany, at which performances of stage works by the 19th-century German composer Richard Wagner are presented. Wagner himself conceived and promoted the idea of a special ...

conducting ''

Tannhäuser Tannhäuser (; ), often stylized "The Tannhäuser", was a German Minnesinger and traveling poet. Historically, his biography, including the dates he lived, is obscure beyond the poetry, which suggests he lived between 1245 and 1265. His name ...

'' and conducted it again at the 2014 festival. Bayreuther Festspiele
Axel Kober
. Retrieved 5 September 2014 .

References

External links

Artist's biography
at RB Artists Management, Vienna (in English)
Video: Kober conducting the Deutsche Oper am Rhein und Duisburger Philharmoniker Orchestra

Duisburg Duisburg (; , ) is a city in the Ruhr metropolitan area of the western States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Lying on the confluence of the Rhine (Lower Rhine) and the Ruhr (river), Ruhr rivers in the center of the Rhine-Ruh ...

, 10 June 2012 (official YouTube channel of the

) {{DEFAULTSORT:Kober, Axel German male conductors (music) Music directors (opera) 1970 births Living people People from Kronach (district) 21st-century German conductors (music) 21st-century German male musicians 20th-century German conductors (music) 20th-century German male musicians Hochschule für Musik Würzburg alumni