Heinz Holliger

Born in Langenthal, Switzerland on May 21, 1939, Heinz Holliger is an oboist, composer, and conductor. At the age of 11, he began playing the oboe. He studied the instrument at the Bern Music School and Conservatory before taking first prize at the 1959 Geneva International Music Competition. Heinz Holliger then studied composition with Sándor Varess and Pierre Boulez. Throughout his lengthy career, he has become one of the world’s most celebrated oboists, recording both beloved classics and new compositions alike. Some of those new works by Karlheinz Stockhausen, Hans Werner Henze, Olivier Messiaen and others were written specifically for him. Heinz Holliger's repertoire has covered all genres and he’s equally comfortable performing stage works via orchestral, solo, and chamber music works. Heinz Holliger’s many awards and honors include the Composer’s Prize from the Swiss Musician’s Association, an honorary doctorate from the University of Zürich, the Diapason d’Or, the Edison Award, and many more. He has conducted many leading orchestras and ensembles around the world including the Cleveland Orchestra, Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw Orchestra, the London Philharmonia Orchestra, the Vienna Symphony, the National Orchestra of Lyon, and the Strasbourg Philharmonic, among others. On top of his acclaimed work as a musician, Heinz Holliger is also in high demand as a composer. His opera Schneewittchen premiered at the Zurich Opera in 1998 and was honored with a Grammy Award in 2002. He is featured on over 200 released recordings spanning many labels including ECM, Phillips, Deutsche Grammophone, CBS, Archiv Produktion, and many others. His releases include The Baroque Oboe (1966), Oboe and Cor Anglais (1969), Modern Music for Wind (1973), Schumann: Works for Oboe & Piano (1980), Heinz Holliger (2014), and Zwiegespräche (2019). He continued to expand his catalog with releases such as Schubert: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 3 (2020), Schubert: Symphonies Nos. 4 & 6 (2020), Schönberg: Kammersymphonie Op. 9, Sechs Kleine Stücke, Op. 19 (Arr. Holliger) - Webern: Symphonie, Op. 21, Fünf Sätze, Op. 5 (2022), and Éventail (2023). He’s also released several compilations throughout his career including The Art of Heinz Robert Holliger (2021).