Michael Gläser

For the poet and educator, see Michael Glaser. For the Starsky & Hutch actor, see Paul Michael Glaser.
Michael Gläser
Born (1957-11-02) 2 November 1957 (age 67)
Karl-Marx-Stadt, East Germany
Education
Occupations
  • Conductor
  • Singer
  • Choral conductor
  • Academic teacher
Organizations

Michael Gläser (born 2 November 1957) is a German singer, choral conductor and academic teacher. He was artistic director of broadcasters' choirs including the Rundfunkchor Berlin and the choir of the Bayerischer Rundfunk. He has been professor of choral conducting and Protestant church music at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater München from 1994. Two recordings for which he conducted a choir were nominated for the Grammy Awards.

Life

Born in Chemnitz (then Karl-Marx-Stadt), Gläser attended the Thomasschule zu Leipzig from 1967 to 1978 where he was a member of the Thomanerchor.[1] He studied voice with Heidi Rieß and conducting with Andreas Pieske, Wolf-Dieter Hauschild and Dietrich Knothe at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" Leipzig and the Hochschule für Musik "Hanns Eisler" Berlin from 1978 to 1985.[2]

He conducted the GewandhausChor [de], the Berliner Singakademie and the MDR Rundfunkchor in Leipzig, where he was also active as a singer.[1] In 1986, he became assistant to Dietrich Knothe at the Rundfunkchor Berlin. From 1990 to 2005 he was artistic director of the Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks [de].[1] From 1998, the choir held subscription concerts at the Prinzregententheater. He remained a guest conductor of the choir.[1]

In 2014, Gläser stepped in for the sick Thomaskantor Georg Christoph Biller and led the Thomanerchor as interim cantor for a quarter of a year.[3] During this time, he conducted the weekly Motette concerts as well as concerts with the Gewandhaus Orchestra.[4][5]

Since 1994, Gläser has been professor of choral conducting at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater München. He is also head of the Department of Protestant Church Music.[1] In 2003, he founded the Bayerischer Rundfunk Choral Conductors Forum.[6]

Awards

Recordings with Gläser were nominated twice for the Grammy awards in the category Best Choral Performance, for the 42nd Annual Grammy Awards in 1999 for Schmidt's Das Buch mit sieben Siegeln, and for the 50th Annual Grammy Awards in 2007 for Schönberg's Gurre-Lieder, with the Choir of the Bavarian Radio and the MDR Radio Choir Leipzig, conducted by Howard Arman.[7][8]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "Michael Gläser, Prof. für Chordirigieren, Evangelische Kirchenmusik" (in German). Musikhochschule München. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  2. ^ Chor-Workshop mit Michael Gläser
  3. ^ "Prof. Michael Gläser (56): Vom Chorknaben zum Thomaskantor". Bild. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
  4. ^ Michael Glaser on Radio Swiss Classic
  5. ^ Michael Gläser (in Dutch)
  6. ^ Gläser, Michael on BMLO
  7. ^ Grammy Award Results for Michael Glaser grammy.com
  8. ^ Grammy für Mariss Jansons und das BR-Symphonieorchester (in German) miz.org 9 February 2006

Further reading