HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Christoph Prégardien (born 18 January 1956) is a German
lyric tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below mi ...
whose career is closely associated with the roles in
Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...
operas, as well as performances of
Lieder In the Western classical music tradition, ( , ; , ; ) is a term for setting poetry to classical music. The term is used for any kind of song in contemporary German and Dutch, but among English and French speakers, is often used interchangea ...
,
oratorio An oratorio () is a musical composition with dramatic or narrative text for choir, soloists and orchestra or other ensemble. Similar to opera, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguisha ...
roles, and
Baroque music Baroque music ( or ) refers to the period or dominant style of Classical music, Western classical music composed from about 1600 to 1750. The Baroque style followed the Renaissance music, Renaissance period, and was followed in turn by the Class ...
. He is well known for his performances and recordings of the Evangelist roles in Bach's ''
St John Passion The ''Passio secundum Joannem'' or ''St John Passion'' (), BWV 245, is a Passion or oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach, the earliest of the surviving Passions by Bach. It was written during his first year as director of church music in Leipzi ...
'' and ''
St Matthew Passion The ''St Matthew Passion'' (), BWV 244, is a '' Passion'', a sacred oratorio written by Johann Sebastian Bach in 1727 for solo voices, double choir and double orchestra, with libretto by Picander. It sets the 26th and 27th chapters of th ...
''. Born in
Limburg an der Lahn Limburg an der Lahn (, ; officially abbreviated ''Limburg a. d. Lahn'') is the district seat of Limburg-Weilburg in Hesse, Germany. Geography Location Limburg lies in western Hesse between the Taunus and the Westerwald on the river Lahn. The t ...
, he began his musical education as a choirboy at the cathedral's boys' choir, the Limburger Domsingknaben. He then studied singing with Martin Gründler and Karlheinz Jarius in Frankfurt at the Hochschule für Musik, with Carla Castellani in Milan, with Alois Treml in Stuttgart, and attended Hartmut Höll's lieder class. His orchestral and oratorio repertory spans a wide range from the great Baroque, Classical and Romantic Oratorios to 20th-century works by Britten, Killmayer, Rihm, and
Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ( – 6 April 1971) was a Russian composer and conductor with French citizenship (from 1934) and American citizenship (from 1945). He is widely considered one of the most important and influential composers of ...
. Also recognized as an eminent recitalist, he regularly performs at the major recital venues in Paris, London, Brussels, Berlin, Cologne, Amsterdam, Salzburg, Zurich, Vienna, Barcelona and Geneva, as well as during his concert tours throughout Italy, Japan and North America. He regularly collaborates with piano partners Michael Gees and Andreas Staier. He has made over 120 recordings, on major labels such as BMG,
EMI EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...
,
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 ...
,
Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), simply branded Philips, is a Dutch multinational health technology company that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, its world headquarters have been situated in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarter ...
,
Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at Sony City in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The Sony Group encompasses various businesses, including Sony Corporation (electronics), Sony Semiconductor Solutions (i ...
,
Erato In Greek mythology, Erato (; ) is one of the Greek Muses, the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. The name would mean "desired" or "lovely", if derived from the same root as Eros, as Apollonius of Rhodes playfully sugge ...
and
Teldec Teldec (Telefunken-Decca Schallplatten GmbH) is a German record label in Hamburg, Germany. Today the label is a property of Warner Music Group. History Teldec was a producer of (first) shellac and (later) vinyl records. The Teldec manufacturing ...
. His recordings of German
Lieder In the Western classical music tradition, ( , ; , ; ) is a term for setting poetry to classical music. The term is used for any kind of song in contemporary German and Dutch, but among English and French speakers, is often used interchangea ...
have been highly acclaimed by the public and press, and have received international awards, including the Orphée d'Or de l'Academie du Disque Lyrique, the
Edison Award The Edison Award is an annual Dutch music prize awarded for outstanding achievements in the music industry. It is comparable to the American Grammy Award. The Edison award itself is a bronze replica of a statuette of Thomas Edison, designed by ...
, and others. He took part in the project of
Ton Koopman Antonius Gerhardus Michael "Ton" Koopman (; born 2 October 1944) is a Dutch conductor, organist, harpsichordist, and musicologist, primarily known for being the founder and director of the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir. He is a professor ...
and the
Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir The Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir is a Dutch early-music group based in Amsterdam. The Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir was created in two stages by the conductor, organist and harpsichordist Ton Koopman. He founded the Amsterdam Bar ...
to record Bach's complete vocal works. In opera, Prégardien has made stage appearances in major European houses, performing leading roles as Tamino, Don Ottavio, Tito, Count Almaviva, Fenton, and Monteverdi's Ulisse. Prégardien is also an educator. From 2000 to 2005, he was in charge of a vocal class at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Zurich. Since the autumn of 2004, he has been a professor at the
Hochschule für Musik Köln ' (, plural: ') is the generic term in German for institutions of higher education, corresponding to ''universities'' and ''colleges'' in English. The term ''Universität'' (plural: ''Universitäten'') is reserved for institutions with the right t ...
. Among his students is Ulrich Cordes. His son,
Julian Prégardien Julian Prégardien (born 12 July 1984) is a German lyric tenor in opera and concert. He is regarded as a leading interpreter of the role of the Evangelist (Bach), Evangelist in Passions (Bach), Bach's Passions. Life and career Julian Prégardie ...
, is also a tenor. In 2018, Prégardien recorded his first CD as a
baritone A baritone is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the bass (voice type), bass and the tenor voice type, voice-types. It is the most common male voice. The term originates from the ...
singer, performing cantatas by Bach and Telemann.''Cantatas for Baritone'', Christoph Prégardien, Vox Orchester, Lorenzo Ghirlanda (cond.), Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, 2018.


Selected recordings

*
Marc-Antoine Charpentier Marc-Antoine Charpentier (; 1643 – 24 February 1704) was a French Baroque composer during the reign of Louis XIV. One of his most famous works is the main theme from the prelude of his ''Te Deum'' ''H.146, Marche en rondeau''. This theme is st ...
: "''Motets à double Choeur",'' H.403, H.404, H.135, H.136, H.137, H.392, H.410, H.167, Barbara Schlick, Nancy Zijlstra, Klaus Mertens, Dominique Visse, Kai Wessel, Christophe Prégardien, Harry Van Berne, Peter Kooij, The Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra conducted by
Ton Koopman Antonius Gerhardus Michael "Ton" Koopman (; born 2 October 1944) is a Dutch conductor, organist, harpsichordist, and musicologist, primarily known for being the founder and director of the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir. He is a professor ...
. 2 CD Erato 1992 *'' J.S. Bach: Johannes-Passion BWV 245'',
Philippe Herreweghe Philippe Maria François Herreweghe, Knight Herreweghe (born 2 May 1947) is a Belgian conductor and choirmaster. Herreweghe founded La Chapelle Royale and Collegium Vocale Gent and is renowned as a conductor, with a repertoire ranging from ...
, Collegium Vocale Gent, Christoph Prégardien, Konrad Jarnot (
Vox Christi Vox Christi, Latin for Voice of Christ, is a setting of Jesus' words in a vocal work such as a Passion (music), Passion, an Oratorium or a Cantata. Conventionally, for instance in Protestant music of the Baroque era, the vox Christi is set for a Ba ...
), Camilla Tilling, Ingeborg Danz, Jan Kobow, Peter Kooy 2007


References

*


External links

*
Christoph Prégardien (Tenor)
Bach Cantatas Website {{DEFAULTSORT:Pregardien, Christoph 1956 births Living people People from Limburg an der Lahn German operatic tenors Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts alumni Academic staff of the Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln German voice teachers 20th-century German male opera singers 21st-century German male opera singers