Thomas Zehetmair

Biography

Thomas Zehetmair accomplishes the feat of being equally successful as a violinist, chamber musician and conductor. The Austrian-born artist changes repertoire as effortlessly as he changes roles, and is equally at home with the classicalromantic, the modern and the contemporary periods. As a chamber musician, he has been appeared on international concert stages with his Zehetmair Quartet since 1994. As a violinist, he regularly premieres pieces, including Heinz Holliger’s Violin Concerto, which is dedicated to him. Numerous award-winning recordings and collaborations with such conductors as Sir Simon Rattle, Daniel Barenboim and Herbert Blomstedt attest to his worldwide standing as a soloist. His latest recording, of Bach’s Sei solo on the Baroque violin, has received special attention. It opened the New York Times Best of 2019 list, was one of six ZEIT recommendations of the year and won the Opus Klassik 2020 for best solo recording. In the 2019/20 season, Thomas Zehetmair became chief conductor of the Stuttgarter Kammerorchester. Together with the SKO’s director Markus Korselt, he has proved to be a driving force behind the orchestra’s persistent innovation strategy. Thomas Zehetmair also holds the posts of Chef Principal of the Orchestre National d’Auvergne and Conductor Laureate of the Royal Northern Sinfonia, which he has shaped into one of England’s leading orchestras.