Günther Groissböck

Biography

Günther Groissböck enchants on the opera and concert stages around the world – with the unique noble sound of his voice and virtually breathtaking verve of performance, he awakens his characters, and makes each song cycle authentically come alive.

As one of the most sought singers of his fach, celebrated by audience and media alike, Günther Groissböck guests at the leading opera houses of the world with all major parts from Händel to Verdi, Wagner and Strauss. Regular engagements lead him to companies including the Bavarian State Opera, the Vienna State Opera, the Opera de Paris, La Scala in Milan, the Royal Opera House London, the Metropolitan Opera New York, the Deutsche Oper and the Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin where he sang the role of Baron Ochs in "Der Rosenkavalier" in February 2020 in the new production by André Heller and Zubin Mehta. In 2002 he made his debut at the Salzburg Festival, where – in 2014 – he celebrated his much acclaimed role debut as Ochs in "Der Rosenkavalier" directed by Harry Kupfer. In 2011 he debuted at La Scala in Milan, as well as at the Bayreuth Festival where he has been a regular guest ever since, singing roles including Pogner in the renowned “Meistersinger” production by Barrie Kosky and Philippe Jordan.

His particular enthusiasm for art song reveals itself in his programs – created with love for detail and thorough knowledge of repertoire. Together with Gerold Huber he recorded the double album “Winterreise”/ ”Schwanengesang” as well as “Herz-Tod” with works by Brahms, Wagner, Wolf and Mahler, released by DECCA Classic. Günther Groissböck feels at home in the symphonic repertoire as well – from Haydn's “Creation” to Shostakovitch's Symphony No. 13 “Babi Jar” – he invariably impresses through musical expression, stylistic command, and a particularly clear articulation. Concerts bring him to halls including the Wigmore Hall London, the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, to the philharmonic halls in Munich and Berlin, the Musikverein and Carnegie Hall. A close collaboration connects him with conductors like Philippe Jordan, Valerij Gergiev, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Zubin Mehta, Andris Nelsons, Antonio Pappano, Kirill Petrenko, Sir Simon Rattle and Christian Thielemann.

With his debut as a stage director in 2021 at the Theater an der Wien with “Tristan Experiment”, Günther Groissböck took on a new exciting challenge. Further plans include his role debut as Philipp II. (“Don Carlo“) at the Metropolitan Opera, il Commendatore („Don Giovanni“) at the Teatro alla Scala Milano, Baron Ochs (“Der Rosenkavalier”) at the State Opera Vienna, Kaspar (“Der Freischütz”) at the Dutch National Opera Amsterdam und his debut at the Arena di Verona in summer 2022 with Ramfis („Aida“).

Photo by Dominik Stixenberger