The Bavarian State Opera () is a German opera company based in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

. Its main venue is the Nationaltheater München, and its orchestra the

Bavarian State Orchestra The Bavarian State Orchestra () is the orchestra of the Bavarian State Opera in Munich, Germany. It has given its own series of concerts, the , since 1811. Profile The origins of the ensemble date back to 1523 and the times of composer Ludwig Se ...

History

The parent ensemble of the company was founded in 1653, under Electress consort

Princess Henriette Adelaide of Savoy Henriette Adelaide of Savoy (Enrichetta Adelaide Maria; 6 November 1636 – 13 June 1676), was Electress of Bavaria by marriage to Ferdinand Maria, Elector of Bavaria. She had much political influence in her adopted country and with her husband ...

, when Giovanni Battista Maccioni's ''L'arpa festante'' was performed in the court theatre. In 1753, the Residence Theatre (

Cuvilliés Theatre The Cuvilliés Theatre () or Old Residence Theatre (''Altes Residenztheater'') is the former court theatre of the Residenz in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. History Elector of Bavaria Maximilian III Joseph (reg. 1745–1777) commissioned the co ...

) was opened as a major stage. While opera performances were also held in the

Prinzregententheater The Prinzregententheater, or, as it was called in its first decades, the Prinz-Regenten-Theater, in English the Prince Regent Theatre, is a concert hall and opera house on Prinzregentenplatz in the Bavarian capital of Munich, Germany. Building ...

(completed in 1901), the company's home base is the Nationaltheater München on

Max-Joseph-Platz Max-Joseph-Platz is a large square in central Munich which was named after King Maximilian Joseph. Max-Joseph-Platz serves as the western starting point of the royal avenue Maximilianstraße. Architecture The square was constructed with the erec ...

. In 1875, the

Munich Opera Festival The Munich Opera Festival () takes place yearly in the Bavarian capital from late June to late July. Preceding on the calendar the two nearby festivals of Bayreuth and Salzburg, which both start in late July, the festival summarizes the concludin ...

took place for the first time. Sir Peter Jonas became the

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

in 1993, the first British general manager of any major German-speaking opera house. In 2008, Nikolaus Bachler became Intendant (general manager) of the opera company, and

Kirill Petrenko Kirill Garrievich Petrenko (, Latin script: ; born 11 February 1972) is a Russian-Austrian conductor. He is chief conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic. Early life Petrenko was born in Omsk, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union, to a violinist father and m ...

became

Generalmusikdirektor A music director, musical director or director of music is a person responsible for the musical aspects of a performance, production, or organization. This would include the artistic director and usually chief conductor of an orchestra or concert ...

(GMD) in 2013. In 2014, the Bavarian State Opera received the ''Opernhaus des Jahres'' (opera house of the year) award from ''

Opernwelt ''Opernwelt'' (''Opera World'') is a monthly German magazine for opera, operetta and ballet. It includes news about current performances, portraits of composers and performers, articles about opera houses, performance spaces, and contemporary and ...

'' magazine. In October 2015, the company announced the extensions of the contracts of Bachler and of Petrenko through August 2021. Both Bachler and Petrenko stood down from their respective posts at the close of the 2020–2021 season. In March 2018, the company announced the appointments of as its next general manager, and of

Vladimir Jurowski Vladimir Mikhailovich Jurowski (;() born 4 April 1972) is a Russian conducting, conductor resident in Germany. He is the son of conductor Michail Jurowski, and grandson of Soviet film music composer Vladimir Michailovich Jurowski. Early life B ...

as its next GMD, both effective with the 2021–2022 season. In June 2024, the company announced the extension of Dorny's contract as ''Intendant'' through 2031, and of Jurowski's contract as GMD through the close of the 2027-2028 season, at which time Jurowski is expected to stand down as GMD. The company received the "Opera Company of the Year" award at the 2018 and 2023

International Opera Awards The International Opera Awards is an annual awards ceremony honouring excellence in opera around the world. Origins The International Opera Awards was founded in 2013 by Harry Hyman, a UK businessman, philanthropist and supporter of opera, and ...

Intendant

Johann Nepomuk von Poißl Johann Nepomuk von Poißl (15 February 1783 17 August 1865) was a Bavarian composer and intendant. He was born in the Haunkenzell Castle in Rattiszell, Straubing-Bogen, Bavaria. He died in Munich. Selected works Operas * ''Antigonus'' (1 ...

(1824–1848) * (1848–1851) *

Franz von Dingelstedt Franz von Dingelstedt (30 June 1814 – 15 May 1881) was a German poet, dramatist and theatre administrator. Life and career Dingestedt was born at Halsdorf, Hesse-Kassel (or Hesse-Cassel), Germany, and later studied at the University of Marbur ...

(1851–1858) * (1868–1893) *

Ernst von Possart Ernst von Possart (11 May 18418 April 1921) was a German actor and theatre director. Possart was born in Berlin and was early an actor in Breslau, Bern, and Hamburg. Connected with the Munich Court Theatre after 1864, he became the leading dire ...

(1895–1906) *

Albert von Speidel Albert may refer to: Companies * Albert Computers, Inc., a computer manufacturer in the 1980s * Albert Czech Republic, a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic * Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands * Albert Market, a street m ...

(1907–1912) *

Clemens von Franckenstein Clemens Erwein Heinrich Karl Bonaventura Freiherr von und zu Franckenstein (14 July 1875 – 19 August 1942) was a German opera composer. Early life Franckenstein was born in Wiesentheid, Germany to Karl, Freiherr von und zu Franckenstein (1 ...

(1912–1918) * (1918–1924) * Clemens von Franckenstein (1924–1934) *

Hans Knappertsbusch Hans Knappertsbusch (12 March 1888 – 25 October 1965) was a German conductor, best known for his performances of the music of Wagner, Bruckner and Richard Strauss. Knappertsbusch followed the traditional route for an aspiring conductor in Ger ...

(1934–1935) * Oskar Walleck (1935–1937) *

Clemens Krauss Clemens Heinrich Krauss (31 March 189316 May 1954) was an Austrian conducting, conductor and opera impresario, particularly associated with the music of Richard Strauss, Johann Strauss and Richard Wagner. He founded the Vienna New Year's Concert ...

(1937–1940) * (1945–1952) * (1952–1967) *

Günther Rennert Günther Rennert (1 April 1911 – 31 July 1978) was a German opera director and administrator. Life and career Günther Rennert was born in Essen, Rhine Province on 1 April 1911. His brother was the conductor Wolfgang Rennert. He began his care ...

(1967–1976) *

August Everding August Everding (; 31 October 1928; Bottrop, Germany – 26 January 1999; Munich) was a German opera director and administrator. He studied at the Universities of Bonn and Munich, where launching his career in the 1950s. He was a member of the Ro ...

(1977–1982) *

Wolfgang Sawallisch Wolfgang Sawallisch (26 August 1923 – 22 February 2013) was a German conductor and pianist. Biography Wolfgang Sawallisch was born in Munich, the son of Maria and Wilhelm Sawallisch. His father was director of the Hamburg-Bremer-Feuerversich ...

(1982–1993) * Peter Jonas (1993–2006) *

Kent Nagano Kent George Nagano (born November 22, 1951) is an American conductor and opera administrator. Since 2015, he has been ''Generalmusikdirektor'' (GMD) of the Hamburg State Opera (until 2025). Early life and education Nagano was born in Berkeley, ...

(2006–2008) * Nikolaus Bachler (2008–2021) * (2021–present)

Generalmusikdirektor

Franz Lachner Franz Paul Lachner (2 April 180320 January 1890) was a German composer and conductor. Biography Lachner was born in Rain am Lech to a musical family (his brothers Ignaz, and Vinzenz also became musicians). He studied music with Simon Sec ...

(1836–1867) *

Hans von Bülow Freiherr Hans Guido von Bülow (; 8 January 1830 – 12 February 1894) was a German conductor, pianist, and composer of the Romantic era. As one of the most distinguished conductors of the 19th century, his activity was critical for establishi ...

(1864–1869) *

Franz Wüllner Franz Wüllner (28 January 1832 – 7 September 1902) was a German composer and conductor. He led the premieres of Wagner's ''Das Rheingold'' and ''Die Walküre'', but was much criticized by Wagner himself, who greatly preferred the more celebrate ...

(1870–1877) *

Hermann Levi Hermann Levi (7 November 1839 – 13 May 1900) was a History of the Jews in Germany, German Jewish orchestral conductor. Levi was born in Giessen, Germany, the son of a rabbi. He was educated at Giessen and Mannheim, and came to Vinzenz Lach ...

(1872–1896) *

Richard Strauss Richard Georg Strauss (; ; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer and conductor best known for his Tone poems (Strauss), tone poems and List of operas by Richard Strauss, operas. Considered a leading composer of the late Roman ...

(1894–1896) * Max Erdmannsdörfer (1896–1898) *

Bernhard Stavenhagen Bernhard Stavenhagen (24 November 1862 – 25 December 1914) was a German pianist, composer and conductor. His musical style was influenced by Franz Liszt, and as a conductor he was a strong advocate of new music. Biography Born in Greiz, he comm ...

(1898–1902) * Hermann Zumpe (1901–1903) *

Felix Mottl right Felix Josef von Mottl (between 29 July/29 August 1856 – 2 July 1911) was an Austrian conductor and composer. He was regarded as one of the most brilliant conductors of his day. He composed three operas, of which ''Agnes Bernauer'' (Weima ...

(1904–1911) *

Bruno Walter Bruno Walter (born Bruno Schlesinger, September 15, 1876February 17, 1962) was a Germany, German-born Conducting, conductor, pianist, and composer. Born in Berlin, he escaped Nazi Germany in 1933, was naturalised as a French people, French cit ...

(1913–1922) *

(1922–1935) *

(1937–1944) *

(1945) *

Georg Solti Sir Georg Solti ( , ; born György Stern; 21 October 1912 – 5 September 1997) was a Hungarian-British orchestral and operatic conductor, known for his appearances with opera companies in Munich, Frankfurt, and London, and as a long-servi ...

(1946–1952) *

Rudolf Kempe Rudolf Kempe (14 June 1910 – 12 May 1976) was a German conductor. Biography Kempe was born in Dresden, where from the age of fourteen he studied at the Dresden State Opera School. He played oboe in the opera orchestra of Dortmund and ...

(1952–1954) *

Ferenc Fricsay Ferenc Fricsay (; 9 August 1914 – 20 February 1963) was a Hungarian conductor. From 1960 until his death, he was an Austrian citizen. Biography Fricsay was born in Budapest in 1914 and studied music under Béla Bartók, Zoltán Kodály, Ern ...

(1956–1958) *

Joseph Keilberth Joseph Keilberth (19 April 1908 – 20 July 1968) was a German conductor who specialised in opera. Career Keilberth began his career in the State Theatre of his native city, Karlsruhe, joining as a répétiteur in 1925 and conducting from 193 ...

(1959–1968) *

(1971–1992) * Peter Schneider (interim, 1992–1998) *

Zubin Mehta Zubin Mehta (born 29 April 1936) is an Indian conductor of Western classical music. He is music director emeritus of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (IPO) and conductor :wikt:emeritus, emeritus of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Mehta's father ...

(1998–2006) *

(2006–2013) *

(2013–2021) *

(2021–present)

World premieres

Recordings

Bavarian State Opera has issued numerous recordings under record labels such as

Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family of ...

. In May 2021, it launched its own recording label, Bayerische Staatsoper Recordings (BSOrec). Among the company's noted recordings are the 1989 video recording of

Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

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 . The compo ...

'' at the

Bayreuth Festival The Bayreuth Festival () is a music festival held annually in Bayreuth, Germany, at which performances of stage works by the 19th-century German composer Richard Wagner are presented. Wagner himself conceived and promoted the idea of a special ...

conducted by

, which won Best Video in the 1993

Gramophone Classical Music Awards The Gramophone Classical Music Awards, launched in 1977, are one of the most significant honours bestowed on recordings in the classical record industry. The British awards are often viewed as equivalent to or surpassing the American Grammy ...

. The 1973 recording of Richard Strauss's ''

Der Rosenkavalier (''The Knight of the Rose'' or ''The Rose-Bearer''), Op. 59, is a comic opera in three acts by Richard Strauss to an original German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. It is loosely adapted from Louvet de Couvrai's novel ''Les amours du cheva ...

'', conducted by

Carlos Kleiber Carlos Kleiber (3 July 1930 – 13 July 2004) was a German-born Austrian conductor, who is widely regarded as among the greatest conductors of all time. The son of the conductor Erich Kleiber, he was particularly known for the Romantic rep ...

and released in 2008, was highly acclaimed and selected as Editor's Choice in the April 2009 issue of ''Gramophone'' Magazine. At the International Opera Awards, the Bayerische Staatsoper won the 2018 the Opera Company Award. Their recording of Handel's Agrippina, directed by Barrie Kosky from the Royal Opera House, has been shortlisted for the 2018 Opera Awards. In 1977, a recording by the Bavarian State Opera was selected by NASA to be included on the

Voyager Golden Record The Voyager Golden Records are two identical phonograph records, one of each which were included aboard the two Voyager spacecraft launched in 1977. The records contain sounds and data to reconstruct raster scan images selected to portray the di ...

, a gold-plated copper record that was sent into space on the Voyager space craft. The record contained sounds and images which had been selected as examples of the diversity of life and culture on Earth. In the recording, soprano

Edda Moser Edda Moser (born 27 October 1938) is a German operatic soprano. She was particularly well known for her interpretations of music by Mozart. Her 1973 recital LP ' received the Grand Prix du Disque. Life and career Moser was born in Berlin, the ...

sings "

Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen "" ("Hell's vengeance boils in my heart"), commonly abbreviated "", is an aria sung by the Queen of the Night, a coloratura soprano part, in the second act of Mozart's opera ''The Magic Flute'' ('). It depicts a fit of vengeful rage in which the ...

" from Mozart's opera, ''

The Magic Flute ''The Magic Flute'' (, ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. It is a ''Singspiel'', a popular form that included both singing and spoken dialogue. The work premiered on ...

'', conducted by Sawallisch.

References

External links

*
Bayerisches Staatsorchester history

at the Bach Cantatas Website {{Authority control Musical groups from Munich 1653 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 17th-century establishments in Bavaria Organizations established in the 1650s Musical groups established in the 17th century German opera companies Theatres in Munich