Klaus Donath Don Giovanni at the Seattle Opera: “Superlative conducting…in the orchestra pit, Klaus Donath led a performance of real distinction, accompanying the singers with care and making his players (especially the violins) sing with well-nuanced, beautifully turned phrases. How Mozartean; how welcome.” The Seattle Times The Magic Flute at Michigan Opera Theatre: “Donath, who led MOT’s smashing Marriage of Figaro last season, drew warmly engaging sounds from the orchestra. Textures were full yet clear, dynamics ranged from sweet whispers to firm fortes, and tempos were expertly judged, with phrases darting forward, relaxing at their peak and then ending with an eloquent flourish.” The Detroit Free Press   Der fliegende Holländer at Opera Colorado: “Expertly conducted…German conductor Klaus Donath unleashed an unholy torrent of sound into the Buell, normally an acoustic black hole. For once I felt Denver was getting a true operatic experience—feeling the music drama, not just witnessing it. The word thrilling wouldn’t be an overstatement. From the first urgent bars of the overture to the final redemption music, the conductor retained meticulous control.” The Denver Post ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hannover-born and -based conductor KLAUS DONATH enjoys a distinguished reputation for his extraordinary rapport with vocalists and instrumentalists. He is Permanent Guest Conductor of Rumania's Banatul Philharmonic; and was the much-acclaimed Music Director of England’s Bath City Orchestra (1991-1997) and Bath & Wessex Opera (1991-95), earning particular praise for his traversals of La Bohème, Dido and Aeneas, La Traviata and Don Giovanni. Widely regarded as a Mozartean of the highest order, Mto. Donath was first welcomed in North America for his sensational Don Giovannis with Opera Pacific, the Dayton Opera and Michigan Opera Theatre, which led to reinvitations for Opera Pacific's Le Nozze di Figaro, The Magic Flute and Don Giovanni, as well as Michigan Opera Theatre's Nozze, Magic Flute, Così fan tutte and Der Rosenkavalier. Other North American engagements include the Pacific Symphony Orchestra (three guest-conducting appearances), Portland Opera (Der Rosenkavalier), Opera Colorado (Der fliegende Holländer), the Florida Grand Opera (La Traviata and Così fan tutte), San Francisco Symphony (“Night in Old Vienna” concerts with tenor Jerry Hadley), and recitals with his wife, the soprano Helen Donath, in Miami, New York, Washington, Oklahoma City, Louisville and at the San Diego Opera. In addition he made both his Seattle and Cincinnati Opera debuts with Don Giovanni and recently led a concert in Washington D.C.’s Kennedy Center with members of the National Symphony Orchestra. Mto. Donath began his conducting career at Hannover's Niedersächsisches Staatstheater, also assisting both Wolfgang Sawallisch and Karl Boehm at the Salzburg Festival. He was subsequently named Principal Conductor at the Staatstheater Darmstadt and Professor of Music at the Hannover Hochschule für Musik und Theater. Recent European highlights include Die Schöpfung and Mendelssohn's Lobgesang Symphony in Hamburg, Die Lustige Witwe in Cologne, and concerts in Leipzig, Chemnitz and Berlin. European festival invitations include Bratislava, Herrenhausen, Hohenems, Ludwigsburg, Munich, Prague, Schleswig-Holstein, Schwetzingen and Urach.   Home