|
Wolfgang Holzmair was born
in Vöcklabruck in Austria and studied at the Vienna Academy of Music and
Dramatic Arts with Hilde Rössel-Majdan (voice) and Erik Werba (lied).
Particularly noted for his intelligent and committed performances of Lieder,
Wolfgang Holzmair performs in recital throughout the world. In 2003/4 he
appeared, inter alia, in London, Lisbon, New York, Ottawa, Graz, Vienna, and
at the Risör and Bregenz festivals. 2004/5 included recitals in New York,
Washington, Dublin, London, Vienna and at the Bath Festival (UK), Menuhin
Festival (Switzerland) and Carinthian Summer Festival (Austria), and in
2005/6 again Lisbon, London, New York, Washington, but also Dublin, Galway,
Strasbourg, Geneva amongst others. Pianists he works with regularly include
Imogen Cooper, Till Fellner, Russell Ryan, Roger Vignoles and Gérard Wyss.
Holzmair is also active in the opera world. He recently appeared as Pelléas
at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées (Paris) under Haitink, as Enrico in
Haydn’s Isola disabitata in Lyon under Holliger, as the Count in Capriccio
in Cagliari under Frühbeck de Burgos, Speaker of the Temple in Die
Zauberflöte at Opéra Bastille (Paris). In addition to the title role in a
new Casanova opera composed for the Menuhin Festival Gstaad by Daniel
Schnyder, Wolfgang Holzmair’s forthcoming roles include Papageno in Dallas,
Faninal in Der Rosenkavalier in Seattle, the Musicmaster in Ariadne auf
Naxos at the Teatro Real in Madrid and Don Alfonso (Cosi) in Lyon
under William Christie.
Equally in demand on the concert platform, he has sung with leading European
and American orchestras, such as the Israel Philharmonic, Berlin
Philharmonic, Vienna Symphony, Leipzig Gewandhaus, Cleveland and
Concertgebouw Orchestras, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, etc.
under eminent conductors including Blomstedt, Boulez, Chailly, von Dohnany,
Frühbeck de Burgos, Haitink, Harnoncourt, Norrington, Ozawa. In 2003/4 he
sang Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen with the Minnesota Orchestra under
Kreizberg, orchestrated Schubert songs with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s at
Carnegie Hall under Norrington, and Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde at the
Vienna Festival. Recent appearances include the Irish Chamber Orchestra
under McGegan, Akademie für alte Musik Berlin at the Haydn Festival
Eisenstadt and in Berlin, the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra under Kreizberg.
Future performances include Mahler’s Rückert Lieder with the BBC National Orchestra of
Wales under Hickox, with the Minnesota Orchestra under Litton and with the
Ensemble Orchestral de Paris with John Nelson.
Wolfgang Holzmair has an extensive discography, and his recordings have met
with critical acclaim. His numerous recordings include lieder by Clara and
Robert Schumann and Eichendorff songs by various composers, all with Imogen
Cooper (Philips), various Schubert recordings with Gérard Wyss (Tudor),
Pelléas et Mélisande with Haitink and the Orchestre National de France (Naive),
and Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem with Herbert Blomstedt (which won a Grammy
award).
Since 1998 he has taught lied and oratorio at the Mozarteum in Salzburg and
given master classes in Europe and North America.
|
