Christoph Poppen
“My main aim has always been to make even a symphony orchestra sound like an extended chamber ensemble, with great personal responsibility resting on each musician.”
Christoph Poppen has made a distinguished name for himself as conductor, solo violinist and chamber musician. He was born in Münster in 1956 and grew up in Bonn. The legendary violinist Nathan Milstein was an early influence as teacher and mentor. Poppen continued his studies in the US with Oscar Shumsky and took masterclasses with Sándor Végh. He was a founding member of the Cherubini Quartet, which in 1981 won the international string quartet competition in Evian.
Quartet playing taught Poppen valuable lessons for his later career, he says: “I learned how important it is to be aware of everything, and to lead without imposing oneself on others. This type of leadership is still my ideal method of expressing my ideas to [...]
“My main aim has always been to make even a symphony orchestra sound like an extended chamber ensemble, with great personal responsibility resting on each musician.”
Christoph Poppen has made a distinguished name for himself as conductor, solo violinist and chamber musician. He was born in Münster in 1956 and grew up in Bonn. The legendary violinist Nathan Milstein was an early influence as teacher and mentor. Poppen continued his studies in the US with Oscar Shumsky and took masterclasses with Sándor Végh. He was a founding member of the Cherubini Quartet, which in 1981 won the international string quartet competition in Evian.
Quartet playing taught Poppen valuable lessons for his later career, he says: “I learned how important it is to be aware of everything, and to lead without imposing oneself on others. This type of leadership is still my ideal method of expressing my ideas to musical partners, especially in terms of conducting”.
After seven years as artistic director of the Detmold Chamber Orchestra, he took the helm of the Munich Chamber Orchestra in 1995 and quickly made it a formidable vehicle for voyages of discovery through music ancient and modern. He has been responsible for ECM recordings ranging from music by ex-Soviet composers (the label’s first programme of music by the Tatar composer Sofia Gubaidulina, for example) to Ricercar, a vibrant encounter between Webern and J.S. Bach. More Bach – the D minor partita for unaccompanied violin – brought him into contact with the Hilliard Ensemble on Morimur, a moving and enlightening exposition of what words and sounds may lie behind one of the composer’s most intense utterances. Poppen has also contributed to discs devoted to the music of contemporary composers such as Jörg Widmann (Elegie, 2011), Barry Guy (Folio, 2005) and Thomas Larcher (IXXU, 2005).
Christoph Poppen is currently principal conductor of the Cologne Chamber Orchestra and continues to appear with orchestras all round the world.
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