The German conductor Christoph von Dohnányi, former Music Director of the Cleveland Orchestra and one of the most prominent figures in European and American musical life, has died in Munich at the age of 95, two days before his 96th birthday.
A family marked by history
Born in Berlin on September 8, 1929, Dohnányi came from a family closely linked to both music and resistance to Nazism. His father, Hans von Dohnanyi, a jurist, and his uncle, the theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, were executed in 1945 for their role in the resistance. His grandfather, the Hungarian composer and pianist Ernst von Dohnányi, was an important early influence.
Although he began studying law at the University of Munich, he soon switched to music at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater München, where he studied piano, composition, and conducting. In 1951 he won the Richard Strauss Prize, and shortly afterwards moved to the United States on a Fulbright scholarship to study with his grandfather.
From Frankfurt to Hamburg
Dohnányi began his professional career as an assistant to Georg Solti at the Frankfurt Opera. In 1957 he became Generalmusikdirektor in Lübeck, at that time the youngest to hold such a position in Germany. He later returned to Frankfurt before being appointed to the Hamburg State Opera, where from 1977 to 1984 he developed a repertoire that embraced both the classics and modern music theatre.
The Cleveland years
In 1984 Dohnányi succeeded Lorin Maazel as Music Director of the Cleveland Orchestra, a position he held until 2002. His tenure included:
- The renovation of Severance Hall, completed in 2000.
- International residencies at the Salzburg Festival and a tour of China.
- Symphonic cycles of Beethoven, Schumann, and Brahms, together with recordings of Mendelssohn and 20th-century composers.
- Staged opera projects with the orchestra, including Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte at the Blossom Music Center.
He was later named Music Director Laureate and maintained regular collaborations with the orchestra.
An international presence
Dohnányi also held the post of Principal Conductor of the Philharmonia Orchestra in London, which later named him Honorary Conductor for Life. From 2004 to 2011 he was Chief Conductor of the NDR Symphony Orchestra in Hamburg.
As a guest conductor he appeared with leading orchestras and opera houses worldwide, including the Vienna Philharmonic, Berlin Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Metropolitan Opera, and Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.
Repertoire and advocacy
Dohnányi’s repertoire was rooted in the Austro-German symphonic and operatic tradition, but he was also a committed interpreter of contemporary composers such as György Ligeti, Hans Werner Henze, and Kaija Saariaho.
Personal life
Dohnányi was married three times: first to actress Renate Zillessen, with whom he had two children; later to soprano Anja Silja, with whom he had three children; and since 2004 to the violist and arts manager Barbara Koller.
Tributes
The Cleveland Orchestra described him as a conductor whose collaboration with the ensemble was marked by “artistry, discipline, and mutual respect.” André Gremillet, the orchestra’s president, underlined the significance of his nearly two decades of leadership in Cleveland’s history.
A legacy of more than six decades
Spanning more than sixty years, Dohnányi’s career combined leadership at major opera houses and orchestras with a commitment to contemporary creation. His death marks the end of a long chapter in European and American conducting.
Subscribe to our newsletter