As a symphonic guest conductor, JONAS ALBER has led many renowned orchestras. In Germany, these include the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the WDR Sinfonieorchester Cologne, the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Saarbrücken, the MDR Sinfonieorchester Leipzig, the Dresdner Philharmoniker, Hamburger Symphoniker, and Bochumer Symphoniker. He has also conducted the Niederösterreichisches Tonkünstlerorchester Vienna, the St. Gallen Symphony Orchestra, the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, the Flemish Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestre National de Belgique, the Zagreb Philharmonic, the Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra, the Gran Canaria Philharmonic, the Cape Philharmonic, and the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra.
In 2006 Maestro ALBER made his debut with The Hague Residentie Orkest at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, performing Richard Strauss’ Alpine Symphony. This was followed by an immediate reengagement the following summer. 2006 also saw his debut with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra at Birmingham Symphony Hall and an appearance at the Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival in South Africa.
Recent engagements (2008-2009) have included guest appearances with the Symfonieorkest Vlaanderen, the Kristiansand Symfoniorkester, the Armenian Philharmonic, the Orchestre National de Lille, the Brussels Philharmonic, the St. Gallen Symphony, the Zurich Chamber, the Belgrade Philharmonic, and the BBC Symphony London. He made his China debut with the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra in April and his Japan debut with the Osaka Philharmonic Orchestra in May 2009. The current season brought him to Hanoi for his debut there with the Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra and the Berlin Philharmonic Choir on the occasion of the opening of the ‘Year of Germany’, marked by performances of Beethoven’s Symphony No.9.
As an operatic conductor, JONAS ALBER conducted around 500 performances of more than 40 different operas. His repertoire ranges from the traditional (like Mozart, Puccini, and Richard Strauss) to new productions and premieres. He has given highly celebrated performances of such staples as Der Ring des Nibelungen as well as delivered first productions of several operas, including Britten’s Peter Grimes, Zemlinsky’s Der Zwerg, Korngold’s Die tote Stadt, Ullmann’s Kaiser von Atlantis, Max von Schilling’s Mona Lisa, d'Albert's Tiefland, and Janácek’s The Makropulos Case. His German premieres of Philippe Boesmans’ operas Reigen, Wintermärchen, and Julie, and of Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito, with newly composed recitative texts by Manfred Trojahn (during the 2006 Mozart Year) were internationally commended. He also won international acclaim for his world premiere production of Siegfried Matthus' opera Cosima at the Braunschweig State Theatre.
Additional operatic credits include a production of Schreker’s Der Schatzgräber at the Frankfurt Opera and a revival performance of Peter Grimes. Maestro ALBER began a collaboration with the Kammeroper Schloss Rheinsberg with Iphigenie in Aulis. This production was followed by ones of Norma, Nabucco and Der Freischütz. He made his debut at the Berlin Opera with Carmina Burana and at the Vienna Volksoper with Franz Schmidt's Notre Dame.
In March 2007 Maestro ALBER conducted the world premiere of Benoît Mernier’s Frühlings Erwachen at the Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels and in summer 2007 a highly acclaimed concert version of Fidelio with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra. He conducted the world premiere of Mats Larsson Gothe's opera Poet & Prophetess at Norrlands Operan in March 2008, which was followed by a second production of that work at Cape Town Opera in October 2008. He made his debut at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires with a new production of The Abduction from the Serail in September 2009. He returned to the Staatstheater Braunschweig for a new production of Fidelio and gave his debut at the Dresden Semperoper with the restagings of both The Rhinegold and Götterdämmerung in Spring 2010.
JONAS ALBER’s numerous recordings include the complete symphonic works of Schumann (1999/2000), and selected symphonic works by Sibelius (1998), Mendelssohn (2001), Franck (2003), and Richard Strauss (2006/2007). He released recordings of Mahler’s second and third symphonies in 2005/2006 and of Richard Strauss' Alpine Symphony in 2007. He also recently made broadcast recordings with the WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln, the MDR Sinfonieorchester Leipzig and the BBC Symphony Orchestra London. 2008 saw the release of Strauss' Ein Heldenleben and Tod und Verklärung, as well as a DVD of Benoît Mernier's new opera Frühlings Erwachen. The latter won him the prestigious French recording prize, the diapason d'or, in December 2008.
