A native of Weimar, Matthias Goerne completed his vocal studies with Hans-Joachim Beyer, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. Art song recitals and concertizing are the focus of his artistic career, covering a repertoire from early music through classical and romantic idioms to contemporary works. Goerne has performed lieder programs at the world’s eminent music festivals and at such venues as Carnegie Hall in New York and Wigmore Hall in London, partnering with acclaimed pianists like Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Leif-Ove Andsnes, Alfred Brendel, Christoph Eschenbach, and Elisabeth Leonskaja. Matthias Goerne has also found success on the opera stage. He gave his operatic debut in 1997 singing Papageno at the Salzburg Festival, also appearing there in the summer of 200 in the world premiere of Henzes L’Upupa und der Triumph der Sohnesliebe. He has also been seen on the stages of London’s Royal Opera House, the Teatro Real in Madrid, Zurich Opera, Dresden Opera, and the Metropolitan Opera in New York. He has performed such roles as Wolfram in Tannhäuser, the title characters in Berg’s Wozzeck und Reimann’s Lear, Sebastiano in d’Albert’s Tiefland, Kurwenal in Tristan, and Orest in Elektra, which he undertook in 2008 in Florence under the baton of Seiji Ozawa. Matthias Goerne performs with renowned orchestras including the Berlin Philharmonic, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, London’s Philharmonia Orchestra, and the Orchestre National de France and with such American institutions as the Chicago Symphony, the San Francisco Symphony, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the New Philharmonic Orchestra. His recordings have garnered the Diapason d’Or and German Record Critics’ Award. He is currently recording a 12-CD complete Schubert Edition.
LUCERNE FESTIVAL (IMF) debut on September 1, 1999 in Schubert’s Winterreise, with Alfred Brendel on piano. Last appearance: August 19, 2007 in a Lucerne concert performing Othmar Schock’s Notturno.