Guests of the Richard Strauss Days come together at the end in the Berggasthof am Pflegersee to round off the past days in a cozy atmosphere with Viennese songs, Schrammel music and cheerful works played by Philharmonia Schrammeln and Günther Groissböck.
The menu is included in the price (choice of meat, fish or vegetarian).
Günther GroissböckGünther Groissböck inspires on the opera and concert stages of the world – with an unmistakably noble vocal sound and almost breathtaking expressiveness, he brings his characters to life and makes every song cycle an authentic experience. After studying at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna with Robert Holl and José van Dam, the Austrian bass was a member of the Vienna State Opera ensemble in the 2002/03 season and then at the Zurich Opera House from 2003 to 2007. He made his debut at the Salzburg Festival in 2002 and celebrated his highly acclaimed role debut there in 2014 as Ochs in “Rosenkavalier” under the direction of Harry Kupfer; in 2011, he made his debut at La Scala in Milan and – as Landgrave Hermann (“Tannhäuser”) – at the Bayreuth Festival, where he has been a regular guest ever since, including as Gurnemanz (“Tannhäuser”). Since then, he has been a regular guest, including as Gurnemanz (“Parsifal”), Fasolt (“Rheingold”) and Pogner in the acclaimed “Meistersinger” production by Barrie Kosky and Philippe Jordan. As one of the most sought-after singers in his field, celebrated by audiences and press alike, Günther Groissböck makes guest appearances at the world’s leading opera houses. He is particularly closely associated with the Vienna State Opera, the Bavarian State Opera and the Metropolitan Opera in New York, where he has appeared since his debut in 2010 as Colline (“La Bohème”), Ochs (“Der Rosenkavalier”), Landgrave Hermann (“Tannhäuser”) and Filippo II (“Don Carlo”), among others.
Guest engagements have also taken him to the Opéra de Paris, La Scala Milan, the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, De Nationale Opera in Amsterdam, the Deutsche Oper and the Staatsoper Unter den Linden Berlin, where he caused a sensation in February 2020 as Ochs in “Rosenkavalier” in the new production by André Heller and Zubin Mehta. His particular enthusiasm for lieder singing is evident in the programs developed with a love of detail and in-depth knowledge of the repertoire, with which he can be heard in London, Salzburg, Munich and Vienna, among others. Together with Malcolm Martineau, he produced his latest album “Nicht Wiedersehen!” with songs by Strauss, Mahler and Hans Rott, which was awarded the Choc de Classica, with Gerold Huber the double album “Winterreise” / “Schwanengesang” and “Herz-Tod” with works by Brahms, Wagner, Wolf and Mahler, and with the Philharmonia Schrammeln the Wienerlied album “Gemischter Satz”. Günther Groissböck is also at home in the symphonic field, whether in Haydn’s “Creation” or Shostakovich’s 13th Symphony “Babi Jar” – he always impresses with musical expression, stylistic confidence and a special understanding of the text. Concerts have taken him to the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, the Leipzig Gewandhaus, the Munich and Berlin Philharmonie, the Vienna Musikverein and the Vienna Konzerthaus, Carnegie Hall and Boston Symphony Hall, among others.
He has worked closely with conductors such as Philippe Jordan, James Levine, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Zubin Mehta, Andris Nelsons, Antonio Pappano, Kirill Petrenko, Sir Simon Rattle and Christian Thielemann. His most recent DVD releases include “Der Rosenkavalier” (Salzburg, 2015; The Metropolitan Opera, 2017; Staatsoper Unter den Linden, 2021) as well as Beethoven’s 9th Symphony with Philippe Jordan and the Paris Opera Orchestra; other recordings include “Das Rheingold”, “Lohengrin” and “Fidelio” with Marek Janowski, Mahler’s 8th Symphony and Anton Bruckner’s “The Great”. With his highly acclaimed directorial debut with “Tristan Experiment” at the Theater an der Wien in 2021, Günther Groissböck took on an exciting new challenge, which will be continued in his direction of the new production of Verdi’s “Don Carlo” at Oper Klosterneuburg in summer 2023. Other future plans include recitals at the Vienna Musikverein, London’s Wigmore Hall (3rd season in a row), Brussels’ Théatre de La Monnaie and the Elbphilharmonie, among others. King Marke (“Tristan”), Gurnemanz (“Parsifal”), Pogner (“Meistersinger”) and Sarastro (“Die Zauberflöte”) at the Vienna State Opera, Archibaldo “L’amore dei tre re” at La Scala in Milan, Ochs (“Rosenkavalier”) and King Heinrich (“Lohengrin”) at the Berlin State Opera, Gurnemanz (“Parsifal”) and King Marke (“Tristan”) at the Deutsche Oper Berlin.
His acclaimed role debut as Boris Ismailov (“Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk”) at the Vienna State Opera was followed by concert performances in Boston and at New York’s Carnegie Hall with the Boston Symphony Orchestra under Andris Nelsons. His new song album “Männerliebe und -leben” with Malcom Martineau with songs and cycles by Beethoven, Schumann, Wolf, Pfitzner and Rudi Stephan, among others, will be released by Gramola / Naxos international in November 2023.
