La Stagione Frankfurt & Michael Schneider
Biography La Stagione Frankfurt & Michael Schneider
La Stagione Frankfurt
The orchestra La Stagione Frankfurt has for many years been counted among the most successful ensembles in the field of authentic music performance.
The versatility of the ensemble's director Michael Schneider on the one hand and the artistic flexibility of each of the musicians on the other, enable a convincing and authentic performance of a wide spectrum of works from the areas of baroque opera and oratorios through classical symphonic works to the performance of important pieces of the 20th century.
It is the discovery and performance of lesser known musical gems by composers such as F.I. Beck, A. Stradella, A. Scarlatti, I. Holzbauer and the sons of Bach coupled with the stimulating and authentic interpretation of the standard repertoire which characterises the artistic intention of La Stagione.
Performing regularly with well-known vocal and instrumental soloists, the invitations to important European festivals and concert venues as well as the numerous highly regarded recordings attest to the high reputation of La Stagione Frankfurt.
La Stagione Frankfurt ist generously supported by the Ministry for Culture and Science of Hessen.
Michael Schneider
is representative of one of the most versatile artistic personalities in the field of authentic performance praxis.
As the director of La Stagione Frankfurt he has made a name for himself through his performances and recordings of opera, oratorium and symphonic works from the Barock and Klassik. With his ensemble he has been a regular guest at venues such as the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Alte Oper Frankfurt, Palau Barcelona, Palais des Beaux-Arts Brussels and at important international festivals such as the Handel Festivals in Göttingen and Halle, the Bach Fest in Leipzig, Festivals for Early Music in Vienna and Utrecht and the important festivals of Schwetzingen, Ludwigsburg and Schleswig-Holstein.
Michael Schneider's career as one of the leading recorder and traversflute players began in 1978 after his success at the ARD competition in Munich. Concurrently to his engagements as a conductor he has continued performing as a chamber musician with
Camerata Köln and as a soloist with La Stagione Frankfurt and other ensembles.
Michael Schneider was awarded a professorship in 1980 at the Hochschule der Künste in Berlin and since 1983 has been active in a leading position at the Hochschule in Frankfurt, where he initiated a special course for the interpretation of Early Music.
He has given master classes nationally and internationally at for example the Jerusalem Early Music Workshop, the Paris Conservatoire, the Conservaatorium in Stockholm and the Summer Academy in Innsbruck.
One of the important aspects of the work of Michael Schneider is the rediscovery of neglected master pieces. Within his concept of "Unerhörtes hörbar machen" ( bringing to life that which has not yet been heard). Among theses interesting discoveries have been the Oratorium "La Colpa, il Pentimento e la Grazia" by A. Scarlatti and the "Stabat Mater" by F.I. Beck both of which have been produced for CD. Further recordings with La Stagione include operas by Handel, Telemann, Holzbauer, Gluck, Haydn and Benda, oratorios by Stradella, Telemann and Scarlatti and symphonic works by Abel and Beck.
As a recorder virtuoso he has recorded almost the entire repertoire for this instrument.
In 2000 Michael Schneider was awarded the Telemann Prize by the city of Magdeburg for his achievements with the work of this composer.
In recent years Michael Schneider has been a guest conductor with the North West German Philharmonie, the Magdeburg Philharmonie, the MDR Chamber Philharmonie Leipzig, the Cappella Coloniensis, the Zurich Chamber Orchestra and the Israel Chamber Orchestra.
