Wolfgang Seeliger



CURRICULUM VITAE

Mr. Wolfgang Seeliger is one of the most well known and sought-after conductors in the area of choir and orchestral music in Germany. He obtained his musical training at the Mozarteum and at the University of Salzburg with the likes of Hans Swarowski, the mentor of modern orchestra education, and Nikolaus Harnoncourt who exerted an intense influence on him with his ideas of interpreting music as a language. He completed his education with the conductors Kyrill Konrashdin, Franco Ferrera and Herbert von Karajan.

In 1983 Wolfgang Seeliger was the assistant of Sir Colin Davis, but his musical personality has been most greatly formed by his six years as assistant to Leonard Bernstein. From 1984 up to Bernstein’s death in 1990 the two conductors worked closely together in all concerts and recordings of Bernstein in Germany.

In 1982 he followed a call to the College of music of Heidelberg-Mannheim, where he assumed a teaching assignment for orchestra conducting. In addition he works as a lecturer of different choir, orchestra and conducting courses.

With the concert choir of Darmstadt founded in 1977 he has created an ensemble that makes it possible for him to continuously build a musical body in accordance with his ideas. With this target he also conducts the chamber orchestra of Darmstadt and the philharmonic orchestra of Darmstadt. At regular intervals he works as guest conductor of different European and international orchestras and choirs, for instance with the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, the Philharmonic Orchestra Tokio, the Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg, the Moskow Symphonic Orchestra, the State Opera Lisboa (Portugal), the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra Prague, the Philharmonica di Tokyo and the KBS (Korean Broadcasting System) Symphony Orchestra. As conductor and choir leader Wolfgang Seeliger works at many opera houses and broadcasting organisations.

Wolfgang Seeliger’s repertoire includes not only the standard works of choir and orchestra literature of classical and contemporary music, but also less known and unusual music. From 1994 he was leader of the summer festival Jagdschloss Kranichstein, since 2001 he is managing the city festival Darmstädter Residenzfestspiele realizing different artistic activities and innovative performance styles. In June 2006 Wolfgang Seeliger was awarded the Goethe-Plakette, being the highest award of the state of Hesse, for his life's work. The Hessian Ministry for Science and the Arts honoured his merits as cultural ambassador for Darmstadt, Hesse and Germany in the world and acknowledged his great contribution to the cultural development in Hesse.