Representation: World
Julian Prégardien was born in Frankfurt and received his earliest musical training as a chorister in the Limburg Cathedral choirs. Following his studies in Freiburg and his time with the Académie du Festival Aix-en-Provence, he became a member of the Frankfurt Opera ensemble from 2009 to 2013, alongside which he began to develop an international concert career.
Today Julian Prégardien is a leading figure among the next generation of classical vocal artists. His vocal clarity, together with his deep connection to the text and its expression make him a sought-after Lied interpreter. Recitals and chamber music projects hold a particular significance in Julian Prégardien’s artistic work. To celebrate the 200th anniversary of the creation of Schubert’s Die schöne Müllerin, he performed the masterpiece across 10 diverse venues in Vienna in autumn 2023, inspiring the artist to found and lead the "Liedstadt" Festival, which debuts in Hamburg in October 2024. The festival will present artists in a variety of formats around the concept of "Lied".
As an opera soloist, he has appeared at the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, the Hamburg and Bavarian State Operas and the Opéra Comique in Paris. In 2018 he made his debut at the Salzburg Festival as Narraboth in Richard Strauss’ Salome (directed by Romeo Castellucci) with the Vienna Philharmonic under Franz Welser-Möst. In 2019 came his debut as Tamino in a new production of Mozart’s The Magic Flute at the Berlin State Opera under the baton of Alondra de la Parra. At the Mozartwoche 2023 he received critical acclaim for his debut as Don Ottavio in Mozart's Don Giovanni conducted by András Schiff, while at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples he performed in a stage version of Romeo Castellucci's Mozart Requiem under Raphaël Pichon. In May 2024 came his success as Tamino in Mozart's The Magic Flute in Cleveland, conducted by Franz Welser-Möst and directed by Nikolaus Habjan. The close collaboration with Franz Welser-Möst continues in January 2025 with a new production of the same work at the Vienna State Opera.
Julian Prégardien was named "Artiste Ètoile" of the Mozartfest Würzburg in 2019, where he performed with the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra and the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, among others. Recent highlights have included a tour with Concentus Musicus under Stefan Gottfried, his debut with the Cleveland Orchestra under Franz Welser-Möst, and his Carnegie Hall debut with Orchestra of St. Luke's under Bernard Labadie. In addition, Julian Prégardien has performed with the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra and the Concertgebouw Orchestra under Klaus Mäkelä, with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra under Sir John Eliot Gardiner, with the Tonhalle Orchester and Alondra de la Parra, with the Ensemble Pygmalion under Raphaël Pichon and with La Cetra under Andrea Marcon. A notable highlight was the performance of Bach's St Matthew Passion with the Vienna Philharmonic under Franz Welser-Möst, Bach's St John Passion with the Gewandhaus Orchestra under the Thomaskantor Andreas Reize, and the St Matthew Passion with the Collegium Vocale Gent under Philippe Herreweghe.
In summer 2024 Julian returns to the Salzburg Festival as Don Ottavio in Mozart's Don Giovanni and as the Evangelist in Bach's St Matthew Passion, both under the direction of Teodor Currentzis. Further highlights of the 2024-25 season include Mahler's Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen with the DSO in Berlin, Haydn's Creation and a tour of Beethoven's Missa solemnis together with the Balthasar Neumann Ensemble and Thomas Hengelbrock. With Monteverdi's L'Orfeo he performs with Les Èpopées and Stéphane Fuget in Dortmund and Versailles, takes Bach's St John Passion on tour with the Ensemble Pygmalion and Raphaël Pichon, and sings Britten's Serenade for tenor, horn and strings with the Munich Chamber Orchestra.
In addition to recitals throughout Europe, he will perform Schubert's Die Schöne Müllerin with Sir András Schiff at the Salzburg Festival, the Klosters Music festival, London's Wigmore Hall and in Vicenza. Together with Kristian Bezuidenhout, he will give recitals at the Schwetzingen Festival, the Vienna Konzerthaus and the Teatro de la Zarzuela in Madrid.
Julian Prégardien has released Schubert's Winterreise, his Schwanengesang and Schumann's Dichterliebe with Alpha Classics. He is an exclusive artist with Harmonia Mundi, under which his recording of Schubert's Die Schöne Müllerin, with Kristian Bezuidenhout on the fortepiano, will be released in August 2024. Off stage, he has been a professor at the Munich Academy of Music and Theatre’s vocal department since 2017, a member of the Schumann Network and the artistic director of the Brentano Academy in Aschaffenburg.
2024 | 2025
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Monteverdi: L'Orfeo
Julian Prégardien, Gwendoline Blondeel, Marie Perbost, Eva Zaicik, Cyril Auvity, Luc Bertin-Hugault, Luigi de Donato, Vlad Crosman, Paul Figuier
Les Épopées
Conductor: Stéphane Fuget
Label: Château de Versailles | June 2024
Schubert/Mendelssohn: Schwanengesang | String Quintet
Julian Prégardien
Piano: Martin Helmche
Violin: Christian Tetzlaff & Florian Donderer
Viola: Rachel Roberts
Cello: Tanja Tetzlaff, Marie-Elisabeth Hecker
Label: Alpha Classics | 2021
Schumann: Dichterliebe
Julian Prégardien, Sandrine Piau
Piano: Eric Le Sage
Label: Alpha Classics | 2018
Bach: Matthäus- Passion BWV 244
Julien Prégardien, StéphaneDegout, Sabine Devieilhe,
Lucile Richardot, Christian Immler, Reinoud Van Mechelen
Pygmalion
Conductor : Raphaël Pichon
Label: harmoniamundi | 2022
Robert Schumann: Dichterliebe op. 48
Robert Schumann: Nachtstücke op. 23
Edvard Grieg: Sechs Lieder, op. 48
Julian Prégardien | Tenor
Éric Le Sage | Piano
Julian Prégardien, tenor
Orchester im Treppenhaus
Discover with us Ruth Schonthal, who was born 100 years ago in Hamburg and had to leave her homeland as a Jew in 1938. Tenor Julian Prégardien and pianist Marlene Heiß present Schonthal's songs, which are characterised by her experiences of flight and expulsion. The concert will be hosted by music mediator Rafael Rennicke.
Julian Prégardien, tenor
Marlene Heiss, pianist
Dr Rafael Rennicke, musicologist
A late-night concert with Julian and Kian, two of Liedstadt's artistic directors, in a cool atmosphere. End the day with a cocktail and lieder by Schubert.
Julian Prégardien, tenor
Kian Jazdi, pianist
Experience lieder for everyone every day with free admission. Always new lieder, presented by a wide variety of artists, sometimes even on historical instruments such as the piano that Mahler once played himself. Embark on a musical journey of discovery every day between 5 and 6 pm in the composers' quarter, where even Schubert can be heard on demand.
Julian Prégardien, tenor
Kian Jazdi, pianist
Representation: World