Marek Janowski

Marek Janowski is one of the great masters of the music of the German tradition. He is recognised throughout the world for his interpretation of Wagner, Strauss, Bruckner and Brahms, Hindemith and the Second Viennese School. From 2002 to 2016 he was Artistic Director of the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin and his Wagner opera cycle with the orchestra in Berlin’s Philharmonie in 2012 and 2013 was held to have set a new standard of performance in concertante opera. The complete cycle was recorded live on Pentatone and released in 2016.

Marek Janowski’s artistic path has led him from Assistant positions in Aachen, Cologne, Düsseldorf and Hamburg to his appointment as General Music Director in Freiburg im Breisgau (1973-75) and Dortmund (1975-79). As his reputation grew, he was soon invited to conduct in many of Europe’s leading opera houses, from the Metropolitan Opera New York to the Bayerischer Staatsoper Munich; from Chicago and San Francisco to Hamburg; from Vienna and Berlin to Paris.

Marek Janowski stepped back from the opera scene in the 1990s to concentrate on the great German symphonic repertoire. He is now one of the great masters of the music of the German tradition, enjoying an outstanding reputation amongst the premier orchestras of Europe and North America.

Between 1984-2000, as Musical Director of the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Janowski took the orchestra to a position of pre-eminence in France and abroad. From 1986 -1990 he held the title of Chief Conductor of the Gürzenich-Orchester in Cologne and was also First Guest Conductor of the Deutsche Symphonie-Orchester Berlin between 1997-1999. From 2000 -2005 Janowski served as Music Director of the Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, and from 2001-2003 he held the position of Chief Conductor with the Dresdner Philharmonie. From 2002 to 2016 he was Artistic Director of the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin.

Marek Janowski has built a distinguished discography including several complete operas and symphonic cycles, many of which have been awarded international prizes. His recording of Wagner’s complete tetralogy the Ring Cycle with the Staatskapelle Dresden (1980-83) remains one of the most notable and musically interesting recordings that has been made. His Bruckner cycle with the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, recorded for Pentatone has also been accorded high praise.