Susanne Blumenthal


Conductor

Susanne Blumenthal is one of the most versatile conductors of her generation, moving effortlessly between contemporary art music, jazz and improvised music, complex interdisciplinary projects, or at the helm of more “traditional” orchestral programs. 


Following multiple engagements with the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, SWR Vokalensemble, Ensemble Modern, PHACE, Ensemble Musikfabrik, Talea Ensemble, Klavier-Festival Ruhr, Schauspiel Frankfurt, Staatstheater Braunschweig, the Munich Biennale, and others, she makes her debut this season at Musikfest Berlin, with the SWR Symphony Orchestra at the opening concert of the Donaueschingen Music Festival, with Remix Ensemble Casa da Música, as well as with the ORF Radio Symphony Orchestra at Wien Modern.
Particularly sought after for her interpretations of contemporary music, with her keen attention to detail and collaborative approach, Susanne Blumenthal has worked closely with composers such as Isabel Mundry, Manos Tsangaris, Rebecca Saunders, Helmut Lachenmann, Lucia Ronchetti, George Lewis, Hans Zender, Nicolaus A. Huber, Friedrich Cerha, Johannes Kalitzke, Mark Andre, Simon Steen-Andersen, Beat Furrer, Oxana Omelchuk, Gordon Kampe, Ying Wang and Vito Žuraj.

With her own new music ensemble MAM.manufaktur - a collective founded by International Ensemble Modern Academy fellows in 2010 that interacts between improvisation, performance and interpreting through-composed music, with a focus on interdisciplinary projects - she has appeared at numerous festivals at home and abroad, including Ultraschall Berlin, the Donaueschingen Music Days, Eight Bridges, ECLAT, the Darmstadt Summer Courses, Festival Mixtur in Barcelona, Festival de Música Contemporánea in Oviedo and the Contemporary Music Society in Seoul.

As Founder and Artistic Director of the EOS Chamber Orchestra in Cologne, she explores the boundaries between contemporary and improvised music/jazz, performing at the Moers Festival, the Bonn Jazz Festival and the Monheim Triennale, among others.



Susanne Blumenthal was a lecturer in orchestral conducting at the Leipzig University of Music and Theatre for seven years before being appointed Professor of New Music at the Cologne University of Music and Dance in 2021. She is a member of both the Forum Conducting Advisory Board and the Podium Gegenwart Advisory Board of the German Music Council (Deutscher Musikrat).

Professional precision, alert sense of sound... highly intelligent artistic forming.
HELMUT LACHENMANN

Working with Susanne Blumental was a great pleasure.
“Void” was meticulously rehearsed and beautifully performed - proportion, line, contour and colour moulded with utmost care and conviction.

REBECCA SAUNDERS

The collaboration with G. Ligeti Piano Concerto was totally inspirational. With joy and admiration!
PIERRE-LAURENT AIMARD


Amazing conductor and person! Her experimental attitude recognizes no borders or limits.
GEORGE LEWIS

A great musician, a passionate and surprising artist.
LUCIA RONCHETTI