Born in Regensburg, West Germany on June 26, 1982, Benjamin Appl is a lyric baritone who is often referred to as a Lieder singer. He began his career as a member of the boys choir at Regensburg Cathedral and performed in Europe and Asia. Although interested in following music as a career, he studied business in school and was awarded a scholarship from the Studienstifung des deutschen Volkes. While attending school to earn his management diploma, Benjamin Appl auditioned and won a spot at the Musikhochschule Augsburg, where he trained under Edith Wiens. He continued his vocal training at the Hochschule für Musik un Theater München and the Bayerische Theaterakademie August Everding. Relocating to London, England in 2010, he studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama with Rudolph Piernay. He also studied under Brigitte Fassbaender, Gerald Finley, Thompson Hampson, Peter Schreier, and Christian Gerhaher. He became a British citizen in 2019. Benjamin Appl has a vast repertoire that reaches back to the Renaissance era and includes modern composers as well. He has performed operas, recitals, and concerts all over the world and has performed with acclaimed orchestras and worked with world renowned conductors including Ivor Bolton, John Butt, Vasily Petrenko, Michael Hofstetter, Marin Alsop, Andrew Manze, Thomas Dausgaard, Paavo Järvi, and many others. His recorded output includes the albums Stunden, Tage, Ewigkeiten: Heinrich Heine – Lieder (2016), Heimat (2017), Brahms: The Complete Songs, Vol. 7 (2018), Bach (2018), Schubert: Winterreise (2022), Forbidden Fruit (2023), and Schubert: Lieder with Orchestra (2023). Since 2016, Benjamin Appl has taught German song at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and had his own BBC Radio 3 program in 2019 entitled A Singer’s World. He’s also been involved with several film projects including the BBC film Winter Journey where he performed Schubert’s Wintereise alongside pianist James Baillieu.
