David Niemann
conductor
© Askonas Holt
David Niemann (*1990) is regarded as one of the most promising conductors of his generation. After winning 2nd prize at the 2015 international Malko Conductors' Competition in Copenhagen he was named Kapellmeister of the Opéra National de Montpellier the same year, where he worked under Chief Conductor Michael Schønwandt until 2018. Recent work has included engagements with the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg, the Orchestre du Capitole de Toulouse, the Ensemble Modern, Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra and the Danish National Orchestra, working with soloists such as Gerhard Oppitz, Tobias Feldmann and Lukaš Genuisas. The corona situation means that his debuts with the Belgian National Orchestra and Royal Scottish National Orchestra have been postponed to a later season. Other work has included world premieres of works by composers including Dieter Schnebel, Malika Kishino, Ulrich Kreppein, Thomas Kotcheff and Birke Bertelsmeier. He conducted Die Feenkönigin / The Queen of the Fairies for children, afterHenry Purcell, at the Salzburg Festival, and Ivan Eröd's Pünktchen und Anton at the Vienna State Opera. He trained as a violinist before studying conducting at the Folkwang University in his home town of Essen with David de Villiers, which was followed by further study in Helsinki, Holland and Hamburg, where he gained his masters with Ulrich Windfuhr. Plans for 2020/21 include Verdi's Falstaff and Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker at Malmö Opera, his return to the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg and Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra and his debut with the Aalborg Symphony Orchestra.