Michael Schønwandt (born 10 September 1953 in

Frederiksberg Frederiksberg () is a part of the Capital Region of Denmark. It is formally an independent municipality, Frederiksberg Municipality, separate from Copenhagen Municipality, but both are a part of the City of Copenhagen. It occupies an area of ...

) is a Danish conductor. In Denmark, he studied piano, theory, and composition, and later continued musical studies at the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the first Duke of ...

in London.

Biography

In 1979, Schønwandt secured a post as 'permanent conductor' by the Royal Opera in Copenhagen. Schønwandt was Music Director of the Royal Danish Orchestra and the

Copenhagen Opera House The Copenhagen Opera House (in Danish usually called Operaen, literally ''The opera'') is the national opera house of Denmark, and among the most modern opera houses in the world. It is also one of the most expensive opera houses ever built at a ...

from 2000 to 2011. His work in contemporary opera has included conducting the world premiere productions of

Poul Ruders Poul Ruders (born 27 March 1949) is a Danish composer. Life Born in Ringsted, Ruders trained as an organist, and studied orchestration with Karl Aage Rasmussen. Ruders's first compositions date from the mid-1960s. Ruders regards his own compositi ...

' operas ''

The Handmaid’s Tale ''The Handmaid's Tale'' is a futuristic dystopian novel by Canadian author Margaret Atwood and published in 1985. It is set in a near-future New England in a patriarchal, totalitarian theonomic state known as the Republic of Gilead, which h ...

'' and ''Dancer in the Dark''. In 2006, he conducted the Royal Opera, in a production of Richard Wagner's ''

Der Ring des Nibelungen (''The Ring of the Nibelung''), WWV 86, is a cycle of four German-language epic music dramas composed by Richard Wagner. The works are based loosely on characters from Germanic heroic legend, namely Norse legendary sagas and the '' Nibe ...

'', released on DVD by

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in W ...

. Schønwandt was principal guest conductor of the Théâtre National de

La Monnaie The Royal Theatre of La Monnaie (french: Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie, italic=no, ; nl, Koninklijke Muntschouwburg, italic=no; both translating as the "Royal Theatre of the Mint") is an opera house in central Brussels, Belgium. The National O ...

from 1984 to 1987, and held the same post with the

Danish National Symphony Orchestra The Danish National Symphony Orchestra (Danish: ''DR Symfoniorkestret''; English abbreviation "DNSO"), is a Danish orchestra based in Copenhagen. The DNSO is the principal orchestra of DR (Danish Broadcasting Corporation). The DRSO is based at th ...

from 1987 to 2000. Schønwandt has also served as chief conductor of the Berliner Sinfonie-Orchester from 1992 to 1998. In May 2009, Schønwandt was named principal conductor of the Netherlands Radio Chamber Philharmonic In August 2010 he formally took up the post, which he held until the orchestra's dissolution in 2013. From 2015 Schønwandt is principal conductor of the Opéra Orchestre National de Montpellier in France. Schønwandt's recordings include the operas, symphonies and concerti of

Carl Nielsen Carl August Nielsen (; 9 June 1865 – 3 October 1931) was a Danish composer, conductor and violinist, widely recognized as his country's most prominent composer. Brought up by poor yet musically talented parents on the island of Funen, he ...

. In addition, he has made several opera recordings, such as '' Salome'' and ''

''. In 2005, Schønwandt was made a Knight 1st Class (''Ridder af 1. grad'') of the

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog ( da, Dannebrogordenen) is a Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single class known a ...

, and in 2011 he was made a Commander of the Order of Dannebrog.

Selected recordings

* Hector Berlioz, ''

Requiem A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead ( la, Missa pro defunctis) or Mass of the dead ( la, Missa defunctorum), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, ...

,'' James Wagner, tenor, Ernst-Senff Choir, Rundfunkchor Berlin, Berliner Sinfonie-Orchestra, dir Michael Schønwandt. CD Kontrapunkt 1993 (recorded in April 1992)

References

External links

Ingpen & Williams agency pageNetherlands Radio Chamber Philharmonic biography of Schønwandt
Danish conductors (music) Male conductors (music) Alumni of the Royal Academy of Music 1953 births Living people Conductors (music) awarded knighthoods 21st-century conductors (music) 21st-century male musicians Erato Records artists {{denmark-conductor-stub