JOHANNES WITT

CONDUCTOR

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REVIEWS

“An exceptional conductor who one should keep an eye on” - Alviano Salvago, DER OPERNFREUND

Johannes Witt is a German conductor with a rapidly growing international profile, recognised for his deep roots in the Kapellmeister tradition and his exceptional affinity for the operatic stage.

He is a regular guest at leading European opera houses, including the Wiener Staatsoper, Finnish National Opera, Norwegian National Opera, Royal Danish Opera, Dutch National Opera, as well as houses such as Staatstheater Stuttgart, Nationaltheater Mannheim and Oper Bonn. 

As permanent conductor at the Aalto-Theater Essen and Oper Wuppertal, Witt has built an extensive and stylistically wide-ranging repertoire, spanning core Italian and German opera, operetta and contemporary music theatre. His work is defined by a strong dramaturgical instinct, a refined sense of balance, and a natural ability to create cohesion between stage and orchestra. 

Alongside his operatic work, Witt is active on the concert stage and has collaborated with orchestras such as the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, WDR Funkhausorchester, Duisburger Philharmoniker, Essener Philharmoniker, Bremer Philharmoniker, Württembergisches Kammerorchester Heilbronn, Slovak State Philharmonic Košice, Vanemuine Symphony Orchestra and the Real Orquesta Sinfónica de Sevilla. 

His concert repertoire spans from early Baroque to contemporary music, often approached with a strong vocal and dramaturgical perspective. Major works include Verdi’s Requiem, Brahms’ Requiem and Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis, alongside orchestral song repertoire such as Strauss’ Vier letzte Lieder, Wagner’s Wesendonck Lieder and Mahler’s song cycles.

A recurring thread in his work is the connection between music and contemporary themes. He is currently developing programmes exploring the tension between nature and humanity, juxtaposing works such as Rautavaara’s Cantus Arcticusand Hovhaness’ And God Created Great Whales with Mosolov’s Iron Foundry and Shostakovich’s The Bolt.

Witt has a particular affinity for Dmitri Shostakovich, whose music he considers profoundly modern and relevant. His repertoire includes Symphonies Nos. 5 and 7, the Cello Concerto, and a range of orchestral works, with a continued interest in expanding this field.

Originally trained as a percussionist, he brings a strong rhythmic drive to his interpretations, with a natural connection to composers such as Igor Stravinsky, Benjamin Britten and Ludwig van Beethoven.

He studied conducting in Cologne and St. Petersburg and is Artistic Director of the State Youth Orchestra of Hamburg. 

• OPERA REPERTOIRE

  Mozart

  ·       Die Zauberflöte

  ·       Don Giovanni

  ·       Così fan tutte

  Verdi

  ·       La Traviata

  ·       Rigoletto

  ·       Il Trovatore

  Puccini

  ·       La Bohème

  ·       Madama Butterfly

  Strauss / German & Austrian Repertoire

  ·       Salome

  ·       Ariadne auf Naxos

  ·       Die Fledermaus

  ·       Die lustige Witwe

  ·       Das Land des Lächelns

  ·       Die Csárdásfürstin

  ·       Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor

  ·       Eine Nacht in Venedig

  ·       The Pirates of Penzance

  French / Slavic Repertoire

  ·       Carmen

  ·       Faust

  ·       Werther

  ·       The Bartered Bride

  ·       Orpheus in der Unterwelt

  Baroque / Classical

  ·       Orfeo ed Euridice

  ·       Cain, overo il primo omicidio

  Contemporary / 20th Century

  ·       Erwartung

  ·       Heart Sutra

  ·       The Raven

  ·       Angel’s Bone

  ·       Il canto s'attrista, perché?

  ·       Il Re Teodoro in Venezia

  ·       Der Wald

• BALLET

  ·       Giselle

  ·       Carmen / Boléro

  ·       La Fille mal gardée

  ·       Romeo and Juliet

  ·       Frida

  ·       Der Widerspenstigen Zähmung

  ·       A Winter’s Tale

  ·       The Nutcracker

  ·       Swan Lake

  ·       Sleeping Beauty

  ·       Onegin

• SYMPHONIC

  Beethoven

  ·       Symphonies Nos. 1, 2, 3, 5 & 6

  ·       Egmont Overture

  ·       Coriolan Overture

  ·       Leonore Overture No. 3

  Brahms

  ·       Symphonies Nos. 1, 2 & 4

  ·       Academic Festival Overture

  ·       Variations on a Theme by Haydn

  Mahler

  ·       Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen

  Mozart

  ·       Symphonies Nos. 35, 36 & 41

  ·       Overtures to Der Schauspieldirektor, Idomeneo & Die Entführung aus dem Serail

  Shostakovich

  ·       Symphonies Nos. 5 & 7

  Sibelius

  ·       Finlandia

  ·       Pelléas et Mélisande

  ·       Scene with Cranes

  Tchaikovsky

  ·       Symphonies Nos. 4 & 5

  ·       Francesca da Rimini

  ·       Capriccio Italien

  ·       Nutcracker Suite

  Contemporary / 20th Century

  ·       Aufbruch

  ·       Cantus Arcticus

  ·       Central Park in the Dark

  ·       The Unanswered Question

  ·       Lontano

  ·       Cantus in Memory of Benjamin Britten

  ·       Dance Suite

  ·       Boléro

  ·       Pines of Rome

  ·       Scheherazade

  ·       Les Préludes

  ·       Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune

  ·       Appalachian Spring

• VOCAL SYMPHONIC / CHORAL REPERTOIRE

  Choral & Oratorio Works

  ·       Mass in C major

  ·       L’Enfance du Christ

  ·       Chichester Psalms

  ·       Messa da Requiem

  ·       Carmina Burana

  Orchestral Song Repertoire

  ·       Sea Pictures

  ·       Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen

  ·       Richard Strauss Songs: Zueignung, Wiegenlied, Meinem Kind, Morgen!