Dirk Kaftan

Dirk Kaftan (born 1971) is a German opera and concert conductor.

Dirk Kaftan
Kaftan's debut as GMD in Graz with Schönberg's Gurre-Lieder in 2013
Born1971 (age 51–52)
Marburg, Hesse, Germany
EducationHochschule für Musik Detmold
OccupationConductor
Organizations

Career

Born in Marburg, West Germany, Kaftan grew up in Wittlich and Canada. At the age of 18 he began employment as a repetiteur at the Theater Trier. Kaftan then studied sound engineering (Tonmeister) at the Hochschule für Musik Detmold.

Kaftan was Erster Kapellmeister at the Graz Opera from 2006 to 2009. From 2009 to 2014 he was Generalmusikdirektor (GMD) in Augsburg. His contract with the Theater Augsburg was to have run till 2016; however he vacated the Augsburg post early to return to Graz Opera as their GMD.[1] His debut in June 2013 was a performance of Schönberg's Gurre-Lieder with soloists, the expanded opera chorus, the Wiener Singverein and the Grazer Philharmonisches Orchester.[2][3] Kaftan was GMD of Graz Opera from 2013 to 2017.[4] In Graz, his repertoire included Wagner's Tristan und Isolde, Zemlinsky's Der Zwerg, Dallapiccola's Der Gefangene and Bernstein's West Side Story, among others. In concert he conducted the oratorio Columbus by Heinrich von Herzogenberg.[5] In 2015 Kaftan was awarded the Karl Böhm Interpretationspreis by the Styrian state government for his work in developing the Grazer Philharmonisches Orchester.[6]

Kaftan's operatic repertoire has also included Wagner's Der fliegende Holländer, Lohengrin, Tannhäuser and Die Walküre; Verdi's Rigoletto, La Traviata, Aida and Don Carlos; Tchaikovsky's Eugen Onegin; Arabella by Richard Strauss; and Stravinsky's ballet Le sacre du printemps.[7]

In February 2016, Kaftan was named as the next GMD of the city of Bonn, including the directorship of the Beethoven Orchester Bonn, effective August 2017 with an initial contract of five years.[8] In September 2020, the city of Bonn announced the extension of Kaftan's contract as GMD through 2027.[9]

Recordings

Kaftan's recordings include the operas Der ferne Klang by Franz Schreker, recorded live in Augsburg in 2011,[10] and Jenůfa by Leoš Janáček, recorded during staged performances in Graz in 2015.[11][12]

References
  1. Krogull, Ute (15 February 2013). "Dirk Kaftan: Der Generalmusikdirektor geht nach Graz". Augsburger Allegemeine. Retrieved 10 July 2017.
  2. "Saisonabschluss mit Gurre-Liedern in Grazer Oper". Kleine Zeitung (in German). 24 June 2013. Retrieved 16 February 2017.
  3. "Grazer Chefdirigent Dirk Kaftan geht nach Bonn: Vertrag unterzeichnet" (in German). Tiroler Tageszeitung. 1 July 2016. Retrieved 15 February 2017.
  4. "Oper Graz: Oksana Lyniv wird neue Chefdirigentin" (in German). ORF. 2 February 2017. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
  5. "Dirk Kaftan" (in German). Graz Opera. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
  6. "Dirk Kaftan erhält den Karl-Böhm-Interpretationspreis 2015" (in German). Steiermark. 26 February 2016. Retrieved 3 April 2015.
  7. Althoff, Bernward (12 February 2016). "Generalmusikdirektor Dirk Kaftan / In Erwartung des neuen Musikchefs" (in German). Bonner Rundschau. Retrieved 8 February 2017.
  8. "Dirk Kaftan soll neuer Generalmusikdirektor werden" (in German). Bonn. 26 February 2016. Archived from the original on 10 October 2016. Retrieved 2 April 2016.
  9. "Dirk Kaftan bleibt bis 2027 Generalmusikdirektor des Beethoven-Orchesters Bonn" (Press release). Bundestadt Bonn. 9 September 2020. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  10. Dosch, Stefan (12 July 2011). "Der ferne Klang rückt nah heran". Augsburger Allegemeine. Retrieved 10 July 2017.
  11. "Dirk Kaftan / Discography". AllMusic. 26 February 2016. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
  12. Braun, William R. (January 2016). "Janáček: Jenůfa". Opera News. 80 (7). Retrieved 8 July 2017.
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