Michael Hofstette Returns to Houston Grand Opera to Conduct 'Fidelio'

Prize winning conductor Michael Hofstetter is a native of Munich, Germany, where he studied piano, organ and conducting. Established both nationally and internationally as a a sought-after opera and concert conductor, Michael Hofstetter has been nominated several times for the prestigious title "conductor of the year" by the German journal "Opernwelt". He is especially known for his interpretation of the operas by Handel, seeking historic sound and authenticity with a modern orchestra.

From 1991 to 1996 he held the position of a first Kapellmeister at the Staatstheater Wiesbaden, subsequently he served as chief conductor at the Gießen opera house, as well as of the Geneva chamber orchestra. He has been invited by the leading German opera houses, such as Dortmund ("Tristan und Isolde"), Komische Oper Berlin ("Tamerlano"), Deutsche Oper Berlin ("Anna Bolena"), Hamburg ("Così fan tutte", "Alcina", "Il Trovatore"), Hannover ("Julius Caesar", "Nabucco"), Bavarian State Opera ("Le nozze di Figaro", "Die Zauberflöte") Stuttgart State Opera ("Actus Tragicus") and at the Semperoper in Dresden ("Hansel and Gretel"). He is also a frequent guest with the opera houses of Cardiff, Oslo, and Barcelona.

Since 2000, Michael Hofstetter is an annual guest with the Handel Festival Karlsruhe, and since 2003 he appears frequently at the Salzburg Festival and the Schubertiade Schwarzenberg. In 2005 he was been appointed General Music Director of the Ludwigsburger Schlossfestspiele in Baden-Württemberg. A year later he was named artistic director of the Stuttgart Chamber Orcherstra.

In 2008 he conducted Beatrice and Benedict for the Houston Grand Opera and returns to the company for "Fidelio" with Karita Mattila, stged by Jürgen Flimm.In April of 2011 he collaborated with Rolando Villazon for a concert at the Teatro del Liceu in Barcelona.

The young Maestro has numerous recordings to his name, such as the complete Sinfonies for Strings by Mendelssohn, and a collection of Rossini arias which has been awarded the Prix de l'Académie du Disque Lyrique in 2008.

Hofstetter returns to Houston Grand Opera to conduct "Fidelio" starring Karita Mattila and staged by Juergen Flimm on October 28 through November 13.