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Georg Zeppenfeld, a renowned bassist from Attendorn in Westphalia, embarked on his musical journey with a dual major in Music and German Studies. Concurrently, he honed his skills in concert and operatic singing at the prestigious music conservatories in Detmold and Cologne, culminating in comprehensive training under the guidance of Hans Sotin.
Following his initial engagements in Münster and Bonn, he was recruited by the Sächsische Staatsoper Dresden (Saxon State Opera Dresden) in 2001, a place that remains his artistic home to this day. In addition to his exceptional performances in Dresden, he has graced the stages of Europe's most significant opera houses and those in the United States, as well as the most prestigious concert venues worldwide.
His repertoire encompasses notable roles from both the Italian and German vocal traditions. He excels in portraying characters such as Rocco (Fidelio), Kaspar (Der Freischütz), King Karl (Schubert: Fierrabras), Raimondo (Lucia di Lammermoor), Zaccaria (Nabucco), Banco (Macbeth), Sparafucile (Rigoletto), King Philip II (Don Carlo), Daland (Der fliegende Holländer), Landgrave Hermann (Tannhäuser), King Henry (Lohengrin), King Marke (Tristan und Isolde), Hunding (Die Walküre), Gurnemanz (Parsifal), Veit Pogner and Hans Sachs (Die Meistersinger), as well as Baculus (Der Wildschütz), Gremin (Eugene Onegin), Wassermann (Rusalka), Arkel (Pelléas et Mélisande), Pimen (Boris Godunov), Peneios (Strauss: Daphne), and La Roche (Capriccio).
One of his pivotal roles is that of Sarastro in Mozart's The Magic Flute, a character he portrayed under the baton of Claudio Abbado in Baden-Baden. This role not only earned him acclaim at the Semperoper Dresden but also at the San Francisco Opera, the Metropolitan Opera in New York, the Vienna State Opera, the Salzburg Festival (under Nikolaus Harnoncourt), the Royal Opera House Covent Garden in London, the Zurich Opera, and the Bavarian State Opera. His remarkable debut as Hans Sachs in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg at the Salzburg Easter Festival in 2019, conducted by Christian Thielemann, marked a milestone in the bass repertoire.
Since 2010, he has been a regular guest at the Bayreuth Festival, where he compellingly embodies the most significant roles within his vocal range.
In the 2023/24 season, he will once again grace the stage of his artistic home in Dresden, featuring prominently in productions of Figaro, Der Freischütz, Tristan und Isolde, Die Zauberflöte, and Fidelio. Furthermore, he will be heard at the Zurich Opera House in Verdi's Requiem. Other highlights in the upcoming season include appearances at the Metropolitan Opera in New York in Tannhäuser, at the Bavarian State Opera in Parsifal, at the Vienna State Opera in Lohengrin and Die Meistersinger, as well as engagements at the Bayreuth Festival in Parsifal and Der fliegende Holländer.
Georg Zeppenfeld ardently embraces the art of concert singing. He has had the privilege of collaborating with renowned conductors such as Pierre Boulez, Riccardo Chailly, Sir Colin Davis, Gustavo Dudamel, Daniele Gatti, Daniel Harding, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Thomas Hengelbrock, Marek Janowski, Fabio Luisi, Lorin Maazel, Andris Nelsons, Marc Minkowski, Antonio Pappano, Kirill Petrenko, Christian Thielemann, and Franz Welser-Möst.
In the upcoming season, Georg Zeppenfeld will perform twice under the baton of Kirill Petrenko: With the Bavarian State Orchestra in Mahler's Symphony No. 8 and at the year's end with the Berlin Philharmonic in a concert performance of the first act of Wagner's Die Walküre.
His impressive and diverse achievements have been documented through numerous CD and DVD releases, as well as in broadcasts and television productions by European broadcasters. For his exceptional contributions, Georg Zeppenfeld was honored as "Kammersänger der Sächsischen Staatsoper Dresden" (Chamber Singer of the Saxon State Opera Dresden) in 2015. Furthermore, in 2028, he received the Prize of the Foundation for the Advancement of the Semperoper Dresden, and in 2022, he was awarded the Austrian Music Theater Prize for his outstanding performance in Parsifal at the Vienna State Opera.
Season 2023/24 (August 2023) - Please use only this biography and no older versions!
