Currently in his ninth season as music director of the Orchestre de Paris, Christoph Eschenbach is in great demand as a distinguished guest conductor by the world's most prestigious orchestras and opera houses.
During the 2007-08 season, the 40th anniversary of the Orchestre de Paris, Mr. Eschenbach conducted concerts with soloists including Lang Lang, Daniel Barenboim and Yo-Yo Ma, and led world premieres of music by Kaija Saariaho and Augusta Reade Thomas, as well as a performance of Mahler's Eighth Symphony. He took the orchestra on a tour of Asia and of Europe, which included concerts at Vienna's Musikverein ... read full bio
Currently in his ninth season as music director of the Orchestre de Paris, Christoph Eschenbach is in great demand as a distinguished guest conductor by the world's most prestigious orchestras and opera houses.
During the 2007-08 season, the 40th anniversary of the Orchestre de Paris, Mr. Eschenbach conducted concerts with soloists including Lang Lang, Daniel Barenboim and Yo-Yo Ma, and led world premieres of music by Kaija Saariaho and Augusta Reade Thomas, as well as a performance of Mahler's Eighth Symphony. He took the orchestra on a tour of Asia and of Europe, which included concerts at Vienna's Musikverein.
Highlights of he 2007-08 season with the Philadelphia Orchestra, where he served as Music Director for five years, included performances of The Rite of Spring and Mahler's Eighth Symphony; an extensive tour of Asia; concerts celebrating the 90th anniversary of Bernstein's birth; and several concerts at Carnegie Hall.
As a guest conductor, Mr. Eschenbach returned to the London Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic and NDR (Hamburg) Symphony orchestras and the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival orchestra, which he took on a tour of Germany, Russia, Lithuania and Armenia. He also conducted the Sinfonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks in Munich and three concerts at the Schleswig-Holstein
Music Festival SHMF, where he served as Artistic Director from 1999 to 2002; he has been Principal Conductor of the SHMF International Orchestral Academy since 2004.
In 2008-09 he returns to the Vienna Philharmonic, with concerts in the Musikverein and on tour in Rome, Aalborg and Cologne; the New York Philharmonic, with Lang Lang; the Staatskapelle Dresden leading their Advent Concert and three concerts in their subscription series; the London Philharmonic, which includes an appearance in Essen; the Los Angeles Philharmonic for a two-week period; and the NDR Symphony Orchestra in Hamburg, where he served as Music Director from 1998-2004. He takes the Orchestre de Paris to the Berlin Festival, the BBC Proms in London and, in addition to conducting two subscription weeks with the Philadelphia Orchestra, leads that ensemble on a three-week tour of Europe. He also makes his conducting debut with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and has a re-engagement with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at the Ravinia Festival, where he was Music Director from 1994-2003.
As a pianist, he continues his fruitful collaboration with baritone Matthias Goerne. Over the next two years the duo will record and perform Schubert's three song cycles, "Die Schöne Müllerin,", "Die Winterreise," and "Schwanengesang," including recitals in June 2009 at the Wigmore Hall, London, and at the Schubertiade festival in Austria.
A prolific recording artist for nearly 50 years, Christoph Eschenbach has an impressive discography as conductor, pianist or both on a wide range of labels. His recordings include works from J.S. Bach to music of our time, and reflect his commitment to 20th-century music. Mr. Eschenbach's discography includes numerous recordings with the Orchestre de Paris - on the Ondine and Deutsche Gramophone labels - as well as with the London Symphony (Sony/BMG), the Vienna Philharmonic (Decca), the Hamburg NDR Symphony (BMG/Sony & Warner) and the Houston Symphony (Koch) orchestras.
Mentored by George Szell and Herbert von Karajan, Mr. Eschenbach went on to hold the post of Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Tonhalle Orchestra (1982-86). His many honours include the Légion d'Honneur; Commandeur dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres; the Officer's Cross with Star and Ribbon of the German Order of Merit; the Commander's Cross of the German Order of Merit for outstanding achievements as pianist and conductor; and the Leonard Bernstein Award.
