Eytan Pessen (born 30 August 1961 in Haifa, Israel) is a pianist and voice teacher, currently at the Opera houses of Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Vienna (Volksoper), Zürich and international festivals. He was former opera director of the Semperoper in Dresden, artistic advisor to Teatro Massimo in Palermo, Teatro San Carlo in Naples, and former casting director of the

Staatstheater Stuttgart The Staatstheater Stuttgart (Stuttgart State Theatre) is a theatre with three locations, Oper Stuttgart (Opera Stuttgart), Stuttgarter Ballett (Stuttgart Ballet), and Schauspiel Stuttgart (Stuttgart Drama Theatre), in Stuttgart, Germany. The s ...

Early years

Born in Haifa, Israel, to parents of German heritage, he studied Piano (with Dr. Nilly Shilo, Walter Aufhauser,

Irina Zaritskaya Irina Zaritskaya (May 2, 1939 - July 30, 2001) was a Ukrainian pianist. Early life and education Zaritskaya started playing the piano at the Children’s Music School in Kiev until 1953, and subsequently continued her studies at the Central Specia ...

and Dina Turgeman), composition (with Andre Hajdu and Daniel V. Oppenheim), and

musicology Musicology (from Greek μουσική ''mousikē'' 'music' and -λογια ''-logia'', 'domain of study') is the scholarly analysis and research-based study of music. Musicology departments traditionally belong to the humanities, although some mu ...

at the Tel-Aviv University Rubin Academy, with a Bachelor of Music, summa cum Laude, in 1983, and a Masters of Music, magna cum laude, in 1984. Further Piano studies at the

Curtis Institute of Music The Curtis Institute of Music is a private conservatory in Philadelphia. It offers a performance diploma, Bachelor of Music, Master of Music in opera, and a Professional Studies Certificate in opera. All students attend on full scholarship. Hi ...

in Philadelphia with Vladimir Sokoloff, (voice studies at Curtis with Robert Grooters), and at the Juilliard School in New York with Marshal Williamson, Margo Garrett and

Alberta Masiello Alberta Masiello (20 November 1915 – 25 December 1990), was an assistant-conductor and opera coach at the Metropolitan Opera; a panelist in the Saturday afternoon ''Metropolitan Opera Quiz'' on the Metropolitan Opera radio broadcasts, and teac ...

. In New York he worked as pianist and coach for the Metropolitan Opera young artist's programme.

Stuttgart Opera 1991-2006

As head of music staff and the casting director at the Stuttgart Opera in Germany, he worked under the German Dramaturge-Intendant Klaus Zehelein and Co-Intendant Pamela Rosenberg. When she left for San Francisco in 2001, he became casting director. In Stuttgart, Pessen launched the international carriers of conductors

Constantinos Carydis Constantinos Carydis (Greek: Κωνσταντίνος Καρύδης) is a Greek conductor, born in Athens in 1974 and active in both the symphonic and operatic repertories. He won the 201 bestowed by the Bavarian State Opera in Munich, with Kent N ...

, Nicola Luisotti,

Carlo Montanaro Carlo Montanaro (born in Cecina) is an Italian violinist and conductor. He concentrates on Italian operas from Bel canto to verismo and also conducts selected works from the French repertoire. Career Montanaro completed his violin studies at t ...

and Robin Ticciati. Singers Lucas Meachem and Eva-Maria Westbroek began their international careers during his Stuttgart tenure as well. Other guest artists were Brandon Jovanovich,

Catherine Naglestad Catherine Naglestad, born in San Jose of Scandinavian parentage, and grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, is an American soprano singer. She earned her Bachelor of Music from the San Francisco Conservatory, furthering her studies in Rome, Mil ...

and Jonas Kaufmann, who explored Italian repertoire as Barbiere-Almaviva, Rodolfo and Alfredo. In Stuttgart Pessen promoted a series of unknown baroque and classic works, and conceived the chamber music series for the orchestra at the Mozart-Saal, which is still running today. Under Zehelein's leadership the Stuttgart Opera won the ''Opera house of the year'' award of European critics six times during the fifteen years.

RUHR.2010 2007-2010

Eytan Pessen was artistic advisor to the RUHR.2010 cultural festival under music director Steven Sloane. An intense collaboration ensued with the composer Hans Werner Henze, 2010 became a year-long Hans Werner Henze project, which spanned many cities, opera and ballet companies as well as symphony orchestras and chamber music groups. Henze wrote his last opera, ''

Gisela! ''Gisela! oder: Die merk- und denkwürdigen Wege des Glücks'' (German for ''Gisela! or: The Strange and Memorable Ways of Happiness'') is an opera by Hans Werner Henze. Background ''Gisela!'' was first performed in the ''Maschinenhalle'' of the ...

'' For the RUHR.2010 (an opera for and about youth, premiered at the RuhrTriennale).

Semperoper Dresden 2010-2013

As opera director of the Semperoper, he invited the composer Hans Werner Henze and the director Stefan Herheim to return each season for different projects. He chose to collaborate with a young generation of directors including Bettina Bruinier,

Jan Phillip Gloger Jan, JaN or JAN may refer to: Acronyms * Jackson, Mississippi (Amtrak station), US, Amtrak station code JAN * Jackson-Evers International Airport, Mississippi, US, IATA code * Jabhat al-Nusra (JaN), a Syrian militant group * Japanese Article Numbe ...

, Florentine Klepper, Axel Köhler, Michael Schulz, Elisabeth Stöppler and Manfred Weiss.Biography in the programme for the May 10, 2013 Wagner-Soiree ‚A birthday song-bouquet for Richard Wagner’, Semperoper Dresden Interested in the artistic benefits of a stable

musical ensemble A musical ensemble, also known as a music group or musical group, is a group of people who perform instrumental and/or vocal music, with the ensemble typically known by a distinct name. Some music ensembles consist solely of instrumentalists, ...

working together over a long period, he chose to extend the Ensemble and the young ensemble (the Dresden opera's studio programme) rather than invest in established guests. Artists such as

Scott Connor Christopher “Scott” Connor (born July 14, 1960) is a professional percussionist and vocalist. Specializing in drums and percussion, Connor is based out of the Southern California area. His specialties are rock, contemporary and progressive ...

, Emily Dorn, Vanessa Goikoexea, Evan Hughes,

Christopher Magiera Christopher Magiera (born May 30, 1983) is an American operatic baritone. Early life and education Born in Evanston, Illinois, Magiera earned a bachelor's degree from Wake Forest University a master's degree from the Peabody Conservatory. He ...

Amanda Majeski Amanda Majeski (October 20, 1984) is an American operatic soprano. Early life Amanda Majeski was born in Gurnee, Illinois, near Chicago. She studied ballet and learned how to play the piano and the cello as a child. Majeski attended Carmel Cath ...

, Marjorie Owens,

Tichina Vaughn Tichina Vaughn (born 19 September 1965) is an American operatic dramatic mezzo-soprano active internationally in opera, concert halls and recitals.https://www.atlantasymphony.org/About/Artists/Guest-Artists/Tichina-Vaughn Starting at the Lind ...

, Rachel Willis-Sørensen and Sebastian Wartig belonged to the permanent ensemble. Conductors that made their debut in Dresden include

Josep Caballé Domenech Josep Caballé Domenech (born 1973) is a Spanish musician and conductor. Caballé Domenech has recently been appointed Principal Conductor of the Moritzburg Festival Germany) and he is also in his eighth season as Music Director of the Colorado S ...

, Julia Jones (conductor), Nicola Luisotti, Michele Mariotti, Carlo Montanaro, Pier Giorgio Morandi, Henrik Nánási, Daniel Oren and Omer Meir Wellber. Pessen widened the repertory span to include commissions from :de:Miroslav Srnka and

Lucia Ronchetti Lucia Ronchetti (born 3 February 1963) is an Italian composer. Biography Ronchetti studied composition and computer music at the Conservatory of Santa Cecilia in Rome and took part in composition seminars with Sylvano Bussotti at the Scuola d ...

, as well as Karl Amadeus Hartmann’s '' Simplicius Simplicissimus'', Jaromir Weinberger’s ''Svanda Dudák'', (''

Schwanda the Bagpiper ''Schwanda the Bagpiper'' ( cs, Švanda dudák), written in 1926, is an opera in two acts (five scenes), with music by Jaromír Weinberger to a Czech libretto by Miloš Kareš, based on the drama ''Strakonický dudák aneb Hody divých žen'' (' ...

''),

Kurt Weill Kurt Julian Weill (March 2, 1900April 3, 1950) was a German-born American composer active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fru ...

’s ''

Street Scene (opera) ''Street Scene'' is an American opera by Kurt Weill (music), Langston Hughes (lyrics), and Elmer Rice (book). Written in 1946 and premiered in Philadelphia that year, ''Street Scene'' is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning 1929 play of the same na ...

'', Hans Werner Henze's ''

'' and '' We Come to the River''. For this performance the famous theatre interior (by the architect

Gottfried Semper Gottfried Semper (; 29 November 1803 – 15 May 1879) was a German architect, art critic, and professor of architecture who designed and built the Semper Opera House in Dresden between 1838 and 1841. In 1849 he took part in the May Uprising in ...

) was completely rebuilt with three vast set parts (designed by Rebecca Ringst and Anette Hunger) jutting into the audience space and reaching up toward the balcony. Henze We Come to the River, at the Semperoper

Henze We Come to the River, at the Semperoper

For the Wagner year 2013 he conceived a mini-festival that explored Richard Wagner's development years in Dresden, combining Wagner's '' The Flying Dutchman'' with Gaspare Spontini's '' La Vestale'' and Halevy's ''

La Juive ''La Juive'' () (''The Jewess'') is a grand opera in five acts by Fromental Halévy to an original French libretto by Eugène Scribe; it was first performed at the Opéra, Paris, on 23 February 1835. Composition history ''La Juive'' was one of t ...

''.

Opening up the Semperoper to the general public, he often wrote essays and editorials; in one case counting the calories burnt going to different operas, or imagining a conversation with the Gargoyles decorating the new building of the Semperoper. For the programme notes of Alcina he wrote a poem describing the first performance of Alcina through the eyes of a young boy.

Pianist, Voice teacher and coach

Eytan Pessen now teaches voice and piano; since 2007 at the

Frankfurt Opera The Oper Frankfurt (Frankfurt Opera) is a German opera company based in Frankfurt. Opera in Frankfurt am Main has a long tradition, with many world premieres such as Franz Shrek's ''Der ferne Klang'' in 1912, '' Fennimore und Gerda'' by Frede ...

, since 2014 at the IOS in Zürich, since 2018 at the Dutch national opera and since 2020 at the

Hamburg State Opera The Hamburg State Opera (in German: Staatsoper Hamburg) is a German opera company based in Hamburg. Its theatre is near the square of Gänsemarkt. Since 2015, the current ''Intendant'' of the company is Georges Delnon, and the current ''General ...

. He often gives masterclasses for singers, pianists and accompanists at the Les Azuriales festival, Meistersinger Akademie in Neumarkt, the Scuola d’Opera in Bologna Duszniki Zdroj, Oberlin in Italy, San Francisco Opera, North Carolina School of Arts, Kyoto University of the Arts, Kaunas Music Academy, New Israeli Opera, Vinterakademi Voksenåsen (Oslo), the Mikhailovsky theatre in Saint Petersburg Festival FAOT in Sonora, Mexico, the Orquesta Filarmónica de Bogotá, The Turku festival in Finland, and the theatres of Stuttgart, Graz and Dresden, Ópera de bellas artes in Mexico City, Fundación Ibáñez Atkinson al Teatro Nacional de Bellas Artes in Santiago, Chile, the Theaterakademie in Munich, the Académie of the Paris national opera and from 2013-2020 at the Akademia Operowa of the Grand Theatre, Warsaw (Teatr Wielki i Opera Narodowa w Warszawie), as well as numerous workshops for ENOA. Pessen performs in recitals and concerts with

Giorgio Berrugi Giorgio Berrugi is an Italian Tenor (voice), operatic tenor. Musical education Born in Pisa, Italy, Berrugi was a clarinetist, graduating summa cum laude from the Istituto “Mascagni” of Livorno. Further studies at the Accademia teatro alla ...

, Justina Bluj, Emily Dorn, Gala El Hadidi, Andrzej Filończyk, Armelle Arménouhi Khourdoïan, Pawel Konik, Maciej Kwaśnikowski, Keith Lewis, Angela Liebold, Amanda Majeski, Markus Marquardt, Danylo Matviienko, Christa Mayer, Paula Murrihy, Marjorie Owens, Michał Partyka, Christoph Pohl,

Matthias Rexroth Matthias Rexroth (b. Nürnberg, Germany, 7 January 1970) is a German countertenor and voice teacher. Winning 1st prizes at the Francisco-Viñas in Barcelona and the 'Belvedere Competition' in Vienna in 2000, preceded an extensive international ...

, Katharina Ruckgaber, Iurii Samoilov, Michal Shamir, Merto Sungu, Mikołaj Trąbka,

, Eva-Maria Westbroek, Rachel Willis-Sørensen and Jan Żądło. With Motti Kastón and Helene Schneiderman he produced a CD of songs in Jiddish and Ladino. Recent appearances include the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Rheingau Musikfestival, Bochum Symphony, and the theatres of Darmstadt, Frankfurt, Stuttgart and Dresden, the Rossini in Wildbad Festival, the Miskolc Festival, as well as radio broadcasts NDR Hamburg, DeutschlandRadio Berlin, the Berlin Philharmonie and Stuttgart opera.

Consulting and Judge

He was jury member of the Stanislav Moniuszko competition in Warsaw, Antonina Campi International Voice competition in Lublin, Concorso Voci Verdiane Busseto, the Belvedere competition in Vienna,Musical America, July 12, 2006 as well as the Marcello Giordani competition in Catania, the Aviv competition in Tel Aviv, El Premio de Canto Ciudad de Bogotá, The 5th International Solomiya Krushelnytska Opera Singers Competition, Concorso Internationale di Assisi, Concorso Aslico in Como and the Queen Sonja International Music Competition. He was advisor to the Juan Pons International Competition in Palma de Mallorca. The year 2011 he was artistic advisor for the Teatro San Carlo in Naples and from December 2012 to 2014, was advisor to Teatro Massimo in

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...

, where he programme
Richard Strauss’
Feuersnot, Jaromír Weinberger's

and Hans Werner Henze's

Sources

* Interview: Marietta Piekenbrock ''der schauplatz ist oberhausen'', Steven Sloane and Eytan Pessen in conversation with Kulturhauptstadt Europas Ruhr.2010, published by Ruhr2010, 2009 * Interview: REGJO Wagnerspuren ‚Semper Wagner’ S.22-24 Special edition Wagnerspuren Sachsen, April 2013 * Michael Kerstan ''Gisela!'', 13 April 2008, in Hans Werner Henze, work diary excerpts published in ''das henze-projekt neue musik für eine metropole'', 2009, RUHR.2010 * Biography in the programme for the May 10, 2013 Wagner-Soiree ‚A birthday song-bouquet for Richard Wagner’, Semperoper Dresden * Joachim Lange, ''An der Schwelle zur Professionalität'', ''

Die Deutsche Bühne ''Die Deutsche Bühne'' is the oldest German theatre magazine and reports on the fields of acting, music theatre and dance. It first appeared under this title in 1909. The publisher is the Deutscher Bühnenverein. The editorial team consists of ...

, January 2012, S.40-41 * Revolution in der Semperoper, Sächsische Zeitung 11.12.2012 * Adieux Frau Hessler, Sächsische Zeitung 24.11.2012 * Staatstheater Stuttgart, Spielzeit 2004/05 und Spielzeit 2005/06
Video interview, teatro Massimo in Palermo
(retrieved July 2013)
Youtube Eulogy for the deceased general director of the Semperoper, Ulrike Hessler.
(retrieved July, 2013)
Radio Interview (in Polish) Moniuszko Competition

Writings

Poems * Eytan Pessen

, in C. E. Chaffin, The Best of the Melic Review, 2001 pp. 88–93, ISBN pending * Eytan Pessen
''Chamber Music''
in Kammerkonzerte 2004/05, Staatstheater Stuttgart p. 74 * Eytan Pessen ''„Alcina“ in Covent Garden, 1735'', in Programmheft Alcina, Semperoper Dresden, October, 2011 Essays(selection) * Eytan Pessen, ''Endings and Beginnings'', in ''„Anders“'', raumzeit3 Verlag, (2006) * Eytan Pessen, ''Über Musen, Masken und Magie'' in „Saisonvorschau Semperoper Dresden“ 2011/12 pp. 14–17, Yearbook – season catalogue for 2011/12, published by Semperoper Dresden * Eytan Pessen, ''Zusammenhängende Reliquien, Eine Geschichte über Richard Wagner und Gottfried Semper''. Special publication for the Wagner year 2013, Semperoper Dresden. *A row of essays in the opera programme notes of the Semperoper Dresden, letters to composers (selection) Sehr verehrter Maestro Hasse August, 2010, Lieber Hans September, 2010, Dear Kurt Weill, Juni 2011, Sommo Maestro Monteverdi, Februar 2011 * Eytan Pessen, ''Rozhinkes mit Mandeln'' in ‚Ulrike Hessler Errinerungen’, in Semper Nr. 2, 2012-2013 * Eytan Pessen, ''Heart in the south'' (in German) (of Hans Werner Henze) in Semper Nr.3, p. 51,2012-2013

You Tube Links

Cilea, Giorgio Berrugi, Wigmore HallAlban Berg, Op. 2, Christa Mayer, Semperoper DresdenRobert Schumann, Der Einsiedler, with tenor Maciej KwaśnikowskiFranz Liszt, three songs, with Baritone Pavol Kuban, Semperoper DresdenGaspare Spontini, Mignon, with Emily Dorn, Semperoper DresdenWagner Lieder, Markus Marquardt, Semperoper DresdenRichard Strauss, Morgen, Carolina Ullrich, Semperoper DresdenRachmaninoff, Andrej Dunaev, Semperoper DresdenRespighi, Giorgio Berrugi Wigmore HallGliere, Danylo Matviienko, Warsaw, Teatr Wielki
Yiddish
Unter Beymer, Yiddish song, with Motti Kaston, EsslingenEynzam, Yiddish, with Mateusz Hoedt, Warsaw Teatr WielkiYankele, with Marcjanna Myrlak, Warsaw, Teatr WielkiRozhinkas mit Mandlen, with Christoph Pohl, Semperoper
Folk
Rumanian Christmas Carol, With Roxana Incontrera, Semperoper DresdenAl la una yo naci, Giorgio Berrugi, Wigmore Hall

References

Notes

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pessen, Eytan People from Haifa Juilliard School alumni Curtis Institute of Music alumni Israeli classical pianists Jewish classical pianists Living people 1961 births Vocal coaches Accompanists Classical accompanists Israeli music arrangers Musicians from Stuttgart Voice teachers Piano pedagogues