Tiroler Festspiele Erl – Richard Wagner: PARSIFAL

Asher Fisch Conductor

Asher Fisch is Chief Conductor of the West Australian Symphony Orchestra and has been Music Director of the Tiroler Festspiele in Erl since the beginning of the 2024/25 season. He is internationally recognized as one of the leading conductors and has an extensive repertoire that covers both opera and concert areas. He began his career as an assistant to Daniel Barenboim and as a conductor at the Berlin State Opera. Since then, he has conducted at major European opera houses, including Vienna, Milan, Munich, Paris and Madrid. As an acknowledged Wagner specialist, Fisch has recorded two complete "Ring" cycles as well as "Tristan und Isolde". In addition, he has intensively studied the Italian repertoire and recently released a Puccini album together with tenor Jonas Kaufmann, the new Artistic Director of the Tiroler Festspiele Erl.

As a concert conductor, Asher Fisch has led renowned US American and European orchestras such as the New York Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony, the San Francisco Symphony, the Cleveland Orchestra and the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Berlin Philharmonic, the Munich Philharmonic, the Orchestre National de France and the London Symphony Orchestra. Asher Fisch is also active as a pianist and can be experienced in piano concerts, with chamber music and as a song accompanist.

Philipp M. Krenn Director

Der österreichische Regisseur Philipp M. Krenn begann seine künstlerische Ausbildung als Solist bei den Wiener Sängerknaben. Nach einem Ingenieurstudium an der Technischen Universität Wien studierte er Schauspiel am Konservatorium Wien. Das Regiehandwerk erlernte er als Assistent und Mitarbeiter von Regisseuren wie Robert Carsen, David Alden, Christine Mielitz, Sven Eric Bechtolf, Simon Stone, Alvis Hermanis und Damiano Michieletto an Institutionen und Häusern wie den Salzburger Festspielen, der Semperoper Dresden, der Bayerischen Staatsoper in München, dem Teatro La Fenice in Venedig, dem Theater an der Wien, der Wiener Staatsoper, bei den Wiener Festwochen, der Berliner Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin und am Königlichen Theater in Kopenhagen. Mit Philipp Stölzl arbeitete er für Produktionen in Berlin, Baden-Baden, Bregenz und Amsterdam zusammen.

Zu Philipp M. Krenns eigenen Opernregiearbeiten gehören die österreichische Erstaufführung von Manfred Trojahns Orest im Museumsquartier sowie Ravels L’Heure espagnole und Poulencs Les mamelles de Tirésias in der Kammeroper am Theater an der Wien. Darüber hinaus inszenierte er u.a. Le nozze di Figaro am Staatstheater Meinigen, die deutschsprachige Erstaufführung von Eötvös’ Schlaflos an der Oper Graz und Valtinonis Pinocchio an der Volksoper Wien.

Heike Vollmer Stage

Heike Vollmer comes from Lower Saxony and lives in Berlin. She studied stage design at the University of Fine Arts in Hamburg. As an assistant at the Berliner Ensemble, she worked with Claus Peymann, George Tabori, Achim Freyer, Karl-Ernst Herrmann, Ulrike Ottinger and Jörg Immendorf, among others. In addition to collaborative work with Dominik Günther, György Vidovszky and Thomas Dannemann, she worked with director Philipp Stölzl on numerous theater and opera productions, including Frankenstein (Theater Basel, Hamburg State Opera), Cavalleria Rusticana/Pagliacci (Salzburg Easter Festival, Semperoper Dresden), Gounod's Faust (Deutsche Oper Berlin, Aalto Music Theatre in Essen), Jan Dvořák's Der Phantast (Dresden State Theatre), Andrea Chénier (Bavarian State Opera in Munich), Jherek Bischoff's and Jan Dvořák's Andersen's Tales (Theater Basel), Rigoletto (Bregenz Festival) and Rusalka (Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam).

In collaboration with director and puppeteer Nikolaus Habjan, Tosca and other productions were created.

Regine Standfuss Costume

Regine Standfuss studied stage and costume design at the University of the Arts in Berlin. She worked as an assistant at the Schaubühne Berlin, at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan and at the Salzburg Festival. Since 1996, she has been working as a freelance costume designer at international stages, including the Theater Basel, the Schauspielhaus Zürich, the Toneelgroep Amsterdam, the A.R.T. in Boston, the Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam, the National Theatre in The Hague, the Noord Nederlands Toneel, the National Theatre for Opera and Ballet Tirana, the Schauspiel Frankfurt, the Staatstheater Stuttgart, the Theater Bremen and the Opera Graz.

Regine Standfuss worked as a costume designer in the feature film German Angst directed by Jörg Buttgereit, Michael Kosakowski and Andreas Marschall. In the theatre and opera field, she works with directors such as Ola Mafaalani, Martin G. Berger, Thomas Dannemann, Michael Talke, Frank Hilbrich, Claudia Meyer and Christiane Pohle. She has a long-standing collaboration with director Philipp M. Krenn. In the current season, her costume designs can be seen, among others, at the Staatsschauspiel Dresden (Nathan der Weise) and at the Staatstheater Kassel (Katja Kabanowa).

Stefan Schlagbauer Light

Stefan Schlagbauer comes from Neuburg an der Donau. After his training as a specialist for event technology, he began working as a stage lighting technician at the Theater an der Wien. He then went to the Staatsoper Unter den Linden, where he has been employed as lighting master since the 2020/21 season. Stefan Schlagbauer was also responsible there for the lighting design of the music theater production Abstract Pieces by Manos Tsangaris and that for the chamber opera Thomas by Georg Friedrich Haas directed by Barbora Horákova. Stefan Schlagbauer also designed the lighting for the 2024 Austrian premiere of the opera Schlaflos by Péter Eötvös directed by Philipp M. Krenn at the Opera Graz.

Thomas Achitz Video

The Austrian-born Thomas Achitz studied film directing in Munich and gained experience on the set of film and television productions before completing a degree at the University of Art and Design Linz. Already during his training, he began working in 2012 at the Salzburg Festival in the media technology department, where he has been a member of the video team to this day.

Since 2019, he has been working closely with the video and film duo rocafilm as a live cameraman, editor and video designer and has participated in these functions in productions by Robert Carsen, Damiano Michieletto, Claus Guth, Rolando Villazón and others at the Salzburg Festival, the Vienna State Opera, the Teatro La Fenice in Venice, the Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona and the Teatro Massimo in Palermo. At the Salzburg Festival Pentecost 2024, Thomas Achitz was responsible for the video design of La clemenza di Tito. As a video designer, he worked with director Philipp M. Krenn on the German-language premiere of Peter Eötvös' Schlaflos at the Opera Graz. Further projects have taken him, among others, to the Schauspielhaus Graz and the Landestheater Linz. On the side, he works as a cameraman and editor on music video productions for bands such as Salò, Berglind or Mynth.

Michael Nagy Amfortas

Der in Stuttgart geborene Bariton Michael Nagy mit ungarischen Wurzeln studierte Gesang, Liedgestaltung und Dirigieren bei Rudolf Piernay, Irwin Gage und Klaus Arp in Mannheim und Saarbrücken. Nach Engagements an der Komischen Oper Berlin und der Oper Frankfurt gastierte er bei zahlreichen renommierten Häusern und Festivals, u.a. als Wolfram (Tannhäuser) bei den Bayreuther Festspielen, als Stolzius (Zimmermanns Die Soldaten) und Amfortas (Parsifal) an der Bayerischen Staatsoper in München, als Kurwenal (Tristan und Isolde) in Baden-Baden und Berlin, in Dallapiccolas Il Prigioniero in Kopenhagen, als Don Alfonso (Così fan tutte) bei den Salzburger Festspielen, als Beckmesser (Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg) an der Oper Frankfurt sowie als Amfortas und Alberich (Der Ring des Nibelungen) an der Wiener Staatsoper. In der aktuellen Saison ist er u.a. in Wien erstmals als Giovanni Morone (Pfitzners Palestrina) und in Frankfurt mit seinem Rollendebüt als Šiškov (Janáčeks Aus einem Totenhaus) zu erleben.

Auch im Konzert- und Oratorienfach Michael Nagy weltweit gefragt. Er konzertierte mit Orchestern wie den Berliner Philharmonikern, dem Concertgebouw-Orchester, dem Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, dem Chicago Symphony Orchestra, dem Gewandhausorchester Leipzig u.a.

Falk Struckmann Titurel

Falk Struckmann is regarded as one of the leading bass-baritones of our time and has very successfully expanded his repertoire to include important bass roles. Most recently he sang the Doctor (Wozzeck) with the Yomiuri Orchestra and Sebastian Weigle as well as with the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra in Hamburg. He also appeared last season as Daland (The Flying Dutchman) at the Berlin State Opera and as Hagen (Twilight of the gods) at the Vienna State Opera. He is known for his interpretations of important Wagner roles such as Holländer, König Heinrich (Lohengrin), König Marke (Tristan and Isolde) and numerous games in the Ring of the Nibelung. The versatile singer's repertoire also includes Jochanaan (Salome), Orest (Electra) and Barak (The woman without a shadow) and Scarpia (Tosca) and Iago (Otello). He performs at the most important international opera centers such as the Met in New York, La Scala in Milan, the Royal Opera House, the Vienna State Opera and the Bayreuth Festival, working together with renowned conductors. Falk Struckmann is a Berlin and Austrian Kammersänger.

René Pape Gurnemanz

René Pape is one of the outstanding vocal personalities of our time. Since 1988, as an ensemble member at the Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin, the bass has been singing the great roles of his field such as Méphistophélès (Faust), Filippo II (Don Carlo), Rocco (Fidelio), Gurnemanz (Parsifal), King Heinrich (Lohengrin) and King Marke (Tristan und Isolde). He has also appeared, among others, as Figaro (Le nozze di Figaro), Prince Gremin (Eugen Onegin), Leporello and Don Giovanni (Don Giovanni) as well as Wotan (Das Rheingold, Die Walküre) on stage. Guest engagements have taken him, among others, to the Salzburg and Bayreuth Festivals, the festivals in Glyndebourne, Verona, St. Petersburg and Aix-en-Provence, to the Teatro alla Scala in Milan and the Metropolitan Opera in New York. On the concert stage, he is in demand as a lieder interpreter and concert soloist. He is a two-time Grammy winner as well as a Berlin, Bavarian and Austrian Kammersänger.

Jamez McCorkle Parsifal

Der amerikanische Tenor Jamez McCorkle erlangte internationale Aufmerksamkeit in der Titelpartie der Oper Omar, die beim Spoleto Festival USA 2022 uraufgeführt und 2023 mit dem Pulitzer-Preis ausgezeichnet wurde. Sie führte ihn an die Los Angeles Opera, die Boston Lyric Opera, die San Francisco Opera und zum Carolina Performing Arts. Zu seinen jüngsten Erfolgen zählen die Partien Bacchus (Ariadne auf Naxos) und Laca Klemeň (Jenůfa). In der aktuellen Saison ist er u. a. als Siegmund (Die Walküre) mit dem Orchestre de Paris, an der Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia und dem Los Angeles Philharmonic zu hören und gibt Rollendebüts als Grigorij Otrepjew (Boris Godunow) in London sowie als Parsifal und Erik (Der fliegende Holländer) bei den Tiroler Festspielen Erl.

Audun Iversen Klingsor

Der norwegische Bariton Audun Iversen studierte an der Norwegischen Musikhochschule in Oslo, der Hochschule für Musik und Theater „Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy“ Leipzig und an der Königlichen Dänischen Opernakademie. 2007 gewann er den ersten Preis beim Internationalen Königin-Sonja-Musikwettbewerb in Oslo. Seither stand er u. a. als Amfortas (Parsifal) bei der Glyndebourne Festival Opera, Don Alfonso (Così fan tutte) an der Norwegischen Nationaloper in Oslo, Figaro (Il barbiere di Siviglia) an der San Francisco Opera, in der Titelrolle von Eugen Onegin am Königlichen Theater in Kopenhagen, in Oslo, am Bolschoi-Theater in Moskau und am Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona sowie als Albert (Werther) und Lescaut (Manon) am Royal Opera House Covent Garden in London auf der Bühne.

Ricarda Merbeth Kundry

Die deutsche Sopranistin Ricarda Merbeth zählt zu den führenden Sängerinnen ihres Fachs. Sie ist an nahezu allen großen Opernbühnen aufgetreten, u. a. an der der Hamburgischen, Bayerischen und Wiener Staatsoper, am Teatro alla Scala in Mailand, an der Opéra national de Paris, am Teatro Real in Madrid, am Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona, am Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in Brüssel und am Sydney Opera House. Dabei verkörperte sie die bedeutendsten Partien ihres Fachs, u. a. die Wagner-Rollen Brünnhilde, Isolde, Senta, Kundry, Ortrud, Elsa, Elisabeth und Venus sowie Strauss’ Färberin (Die Frau ohne Schatten), Elektra, Helena (Die ägyptische Helena), Salome, Ariadne und Marschallin (Der Rosenkavalier). 2010 wurde sie zur Österreichischen Kammersängerin ernannt.

Egor Zhuravskii 1. Grail Knight

Bayreuth, 1882: Uproar in Wagner's eloquently wondrous consecration opera. "Parsifal" is too short! A few bars are missing to ensure the stage magic unfolds in perfect sync with the music. "What now, am I supposed to compose by the meter!" grumbles Wagner, who would be amazed at how modern technological refinements reduce the stress of timing.

Sorin Coliban 2. Grail Knight

Bayreuth, 1882: Uproar in Wagner's eloquently wondrous consecration opera. "Parsifal" is too short! A few bars are missing to ensure the stage magic unfolds in perfect sync with the music. "What now, am I supposed to compose by the meter!" grumbles Wagner, who would be amazed at how modern technological refinements reduce the stress of timing.

Annina Wachter 1. Squire

Innsbruck native Annina Wachter studied singing at the Anton Bruckner University Linz with Katerina Beranova and graduated with distinction from her master's degree in 2020. Master classes with Karlheinz Hanser and Edita Gruberova, among others, complemented her training. With the 2020/21 season, the soprano was engaged as an ensemble member at the Tiroler Landestheater Innsbruck, where she has since appeared on stage as Ännchen (Der Freischütz), Sophie (Werther), Despina (Così fan tutte), Xenia (Boris Godunow), Musetta (La Bohème) and Sophie (Der Rosenkavalier). For her role as Junge Frau in Eötvös' Der goldene Drache, she was nominated for the Austrian Music Theatre Prize in 2023, and for her portrayal of the title role in Delibes' Lakmé, she received the Austrian Music Theatre Prize in the female newcomer category in 2024. At the ZukunftsStimmen competition by Elīna Garanča, she won second prize.

Guest appearances have taken Annina Wachter to the Linz Music Theatre, the Regensburg Theatre, the Bad Hall City Theatre and the Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz in Munich, among others. As a concert singer, she has performed in Bach's Christmas Oratorio and other works.

Camilla Lehmeier 2. Squire

Munich-born mezzo-soprano Camilla Lehmeier studied at the University of Music, Theatre and Media Hannover. She was a scholarship recipient of Yehudi Menuhin's Live Music Now and participated in various master classes. In 2013, she began her first permanent engagement at the Schleswig-Holstein State Theatre, where she appeared on stage as Olga (Eugen Onegin), Orlofsky (Die Fledermaus) and Dorabella (Così fan tutte). Guest engagements took her to the Magdeburg and Bremerhaven theatres. In 2023, she performed as Mercédes (Carmen) at the Aalto Music Theatre Essen. Since the 2016/17 season, she has been a member of the ensemble of the Tiroler Landestheater, where she has appeared as La Muse/Nicklausse (Les Contes d'Hoffmann), Hänsel (Hänsel und Gretel), Nancy (Martha), Mignon, Zerlina (Don Giovanni), Giovanna and Maddalena (Rigoletto), Charlotte (Werther) and other roles.

Kristofer Lundin 3. Squire

The Swedish tenor Kristofer Lundin studied at the former Stockholm Opera Academy. He was a member of the opera studio at Zurich Opera House and the Académie du Festival d'Aix. At the Salzburg State Theater, he appeared on stage as Tamino (The Magic Flute), Jaquino (Fidelio) and Don Ottavio (Don Giovanni), among others. At the 2017 Salzburg Festival, he appeared as Odoardo (Ariodante), Third Jew (Salome) and Fedotik (Three Sisters). Further engagements have taken him to the Opéra de Lyon, the Teatro San Carlo in Naples, the Théâtre du Capitole Toulouse, the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, the Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden, the Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich, the Opéra de Monte-Carlo and the Komische Oper Berlin, among others.

Josip Švagelj 4. Squire

Josip Švagelj wurde 1993 in Zagreb geboren. Der kroatische Tenor machte durch den Gewinn des Ersten Preises und des Großen Preises beim Internationalen Gesangswettbewerb Stojan Stojanov Gancˇ ev sowie weiterer Auszeichnungen auf sich aufmerksam. Als Mitglied des Opernstudios der Musikakademie Zagreb war er in Rimski-Korsakows Oper Mozart und Salieri als Mozart zu erleben. 2023 gab er sein Debüt an der Nationaloper Zagreb als Merkur in Boris Papandopulos Amfitrion. An der Kroatischen Nationaloper Zagreb verkörperte er außerdem Ferrando (Così fan tutte), Gastone (La traviata), Schmidt (Massenets Werther) und Normanno (Lucia di Lammermoor). Sein vielfältiges Repertoire umfasst weiters u. a. die Partien Rodolfo (La Bohème), Alfredo (La traviata), Der indische Gast (Rimski-Korsakows Sadko), Nick (La fanciulla del West), Lenski (Eugen Onegin) und Peppe (Pagliacci). Auf der Konzertbühne ist er regelmäßig in Kroatien und Montenegro zu hören.

Annina Wachter 1. Flower Girl I

Innsbruck native Annina Wachter studied singing at the Anton Bruckner University Linz with Katerina Beranova and graduated with distinction from her master's degree in 2020. Master classes with Karlheinz Hanser and Edita Gruberova, among others, complemented her training. With the 2020/21 season, the soprano was engaged as an ensemble member at the Tiroler Landestheater Innsbruck, where she has since appeared on stage as Ännchen (Der Freischütz), Sophie (Werther), Despina (Così fan tutte), Xenia (Boris Godunow), Musetta (La Bohème) and Sophie (Der Rosenkavalier). For her role as Junge Frau in Eötvös' Der goldene Drache, she was nominated for the Austrian Music Theatre Prize in 2023, and for her portrayal of the title role in Delibes' Lakmé, she received the Austrian Music Theatre Prize in the female newcomer category in 2024. At the ZukunftsStimmen competition by Elīna Garanča, she won second prize.

Guest appearances have taken Annina Wachter to the Linz Music Theatre, the Regensburg Theatre, the Bad Hall City Theatre and the Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz in Munich, among others. As a concert singer, she has performed in Bach's Christmas Oratorio and other works.

Stefani Krasteva 2. Flower Girl I

The young Bulgarian soprano Stefani Krasteva performs both in opera and concert repertoire with a versatile program. She studied singing with Ivanka Ninova and acting with Plamen Kartalov at the National Art School Dobri Hristov in Varna. In 2017, she made her debut at the Opera of Rousse in Bulgaria as Gilda (Rigoletto). In 2019, she first appeared in a production of the National Opera and Ballet Theatre Sofia as Tatjana (Eugen Onegin), where she could also be experienced as Pamina (Die Zauberflöte) and Glauce (Cherubini's Medea). Her other roles include Bastienne (Bastien und Bastienne), Dolcina (Suor Angelica), the title role in César Cui's Rotkäppchen, Kater in Cui's Der gestiefelte Kater, Adina (L'elisir d'amore), Liù (Turandot) and Micaëla (Carmen).

On the concert platform, Stefani Krasteva has already been heard in numerous works, including Schubert's, Dvořák's and Pergolesi's Stabat Mater settings, Beethoven's Missa solemnis, Mass in C major and Chorfantasie, Mahler's Symphonies No. 2 and 4, Mozart's Krönungsmesse and Requiem, Franck's Mass in A major as well as in Gounod's Miserere and Gallia.

Zoe Hippius 3. Flower Girl I

The Russian-born soprano Zoe Hippius completed her musical training in Moscow at the State Schnittke Music Institute and the Gnessin Music Academy until 2018. She completed her studies with Eva Blahová at the Academy of Arts in Banská Bystrica in Slovakia in 2021. She is a prize winner of numerous competitions, including winning the Liszt Prize at the International Éva Marton Singing Competition 2024, and the First Prize at the Rossini International Music Competition in Pesaro 2020.

Until 2023, she was a member of the international opera studio at the Slovak National Theater in Bratislava, where she could be experienced, among others, as Donna Anna (Don Giovanni), Morena (Eugen Suchoň's Svätopluk), Lucia's mother (Miro Bázlik's Peter und Lucia) and Frasquita (Carmen). Further engagements include Queen of the Night (Die Zauberflöte) at the National Theater Košice, the title role in Rimsky-Korsakov's Das Schneemädchen, Mademoiselle Silberklang (Mozart's Der Schauspieldirektor) Xenia (Boris Godunov) at the Academic Opera and Ballet Theater Samara, Pamina (Die Zauberflöte) at the Oldenburg State Theater, Musetta (La Bohème) and Gilda (Rigoletto) at the Teatro Morlacchi in Perugia and, Amina (La sonnambula).

Lina Tsiklauri 1. Flower Girl II

Bayreuth, 1882: Uproar in Wagner's eloquently wondrous consecration opera. "Parsifal" is too short! A few bars are missing to ensure the stage magic unfolds in perfect sync with the music. "What now, am I supposed to compose by the meter!" grumbles Wagner, who would be amazed at how modern technological refinements reduce the stress of timing.

Camilla Lehmeier 2. Flower Girl II

Munich-born mezzo-soprano Camilla Lehmeier studied at the University of Music, Theatre and Media Hannover. She was a scholarship recipient of Yehudi Menuhin's Live Music Now and participated in various master classes. In 2013, she began her first permanent engagement at the Schleswig-Holstein State Theatre, where she appeared on stage as Olga (Eugen Onegin), Orlofsky (Die Fledermaus) and Dorabella (Così fan tutte). Guest engagements took her to the Magdeburg and Bremerhaven theatres. In 2023, she performed as Mercédes (Carmen) at the Aalto Music Theatre Essen. Since the 2016/17 season, she has been a member of the ensemble of the Tiroler Landestheater, where she has appeared as La Muse/Nicklausse (Les Contes d'Hoffmann), Hänsel (Hänsel und Gretel), Nancy (Martha), Mignon, Zerlina (Don Giovanni), Giovanna and Maddalena (Rigoletto), Charlotte (Werther) and other roles.

Ani Kushyan 3. Flower Girl II

Bayreuth, 1882: Uproar in Wagner's eloquently wondrous consecration opera. "Parsifal" is too short! A few bars are missing to ensure the stage magic unfolds in perfect sync with the music. "What now, am I supposed to compose by the meter!" grumbles Wagner, who would be amazed at how modern technological refinements reduce the stress of timing.

Ani Kushyan Voice from above

Bayreuth, 1882: Uproar in Wagner's eloquently wondrous consecration opera. "Parsifal" is too short! A few bars are missing to ensure the stage magic unfolds in perfect sync with the music. "What now, am I supposed to compose by the meter!" grumbles Wagner, who would be amazed at how modern technological refinements reduce the stress of timing.

Orchestra and Chorus of the Tiroler Festspiele Erl

Tiroler Festspiele Erl Orchestra

The music springs from the enthusiasm of a motivated and exceptionally well-prepared ensemble that has grown together over the years. The Tyrolean Festival Erl Orchestra was first formed in the summer of 1999—and today, musicians from 20 nations play together. Already in its first year, the ensemble achieved unprecedented success, which would go on to bring international recognition to the Tyrolean Festival Erl. Top young talents, musicians from major international orchestras, chamber music specialists, and lecturers come together annually in summer and winter—and since 2017, also in fall and spring—as part of the Tyrolean Festival Erl. Under the direction of festival founder Gustav Kuhn, the orchestra garnered rave reviews from international critics and cemented its reputation as one of the world’s finest Wagner orchestras. With the start of Jonas Kaufmann’s tenure as artistic director in September 2024, Asher Fisch—a conductor in high demand internationally in both opera and concert settings—has taken over the helm of the orchestra.

In addition to Richard Wagner’s ten major music dramas and operas by Strauss, Mozart, Beethoven, Verdi, and Rossini, the orchestra’s repertoire includes Beethoven’s symphonies and many other key works from the concert repertoire spanning the Baroque and Romantic periods, as well as contemporary works and world premieres.

Tiroler Festspiele Erl Choir

Founded in 2007, the choir serves as an equal musical partner to the festival orchestra. The focus is on meticulous attention to individual parts. As part of the festival, the singers work on a wide range of projects, from a cappella programs to concert and opera productions. Since the opening of the Festspielhaus Erl in 2012, the repertoire has placed additional emphasis on bel canto works and Verdi’s operas.

The development of a Baroque choral sound in the works of Bach and his contemporaries is also a key focus of the ensemble’s work; since 2009, it has maintained close ties with Capella Minsk, the State Academic Choir of the Republic of Belarus. Founded in 1940, this choral ensemble has made it its mission to preserve Belarusian folk music and to premiere works by modern and contemporary composers.

The choir is distinguished by its precise intonation, harmony, versatility, and dynamic sound—qualities that have formed the basis for numerous tours throughout Europe in recent years. Its repertoire includes requiems, masses, cantatas, and sacred works, as well as operas. After Lyudmila Yefimova spent many years developing and shaping the choir’s quality, Olga Yanum took over as the ensemble’s director following her death in 2018.

Richard Wagner: PARSIFAL

Team