Matthias Maierhofer

Matthias Maierhofer (born December 8, 1979 in Graz ) is an Austrian organist and church musician .

education

Matthias Maierhofer received his first musical training from Karl Schmelzer-Ziringer. This was followed by organ and church music studies at the universities of Graz , Leipzig , Freiburg and at the Schola Cantorum in Basel . His teachers included Arvid Gast, Andrea Marcon, Kurt Neuhauser and Martin Schmeding . He completed his studies with a soloist examination with distinction at the Freiburg University of Music.

Awards and concerts

In 2007 Matthias Maierhofer won the Pachelbel Competition in Nuremberg, one of the most renowned international organ competitions. He was also a prizewinner at the International "Franz Schmidt Organ Competition" in Kitzbühel in 2008, at the International Bach Competition in Arnstadt in 2007, at the International Organ Concours in Nijmegen in 2006 and at the International Organ Competition "M. K. Ciurlionis “in Vilnius 2003.

A lively concert activity led him to important festivals such as the Bruckner Days at St. Florian / Linz Abbey , the ION Nuremberg, the Mendelssohn Festival Leipzig , the Lithuanian Organ Festival, the Bach Week Ansbach, the Birmingham Symphony Hall (England), the Izumi Hall Osaka (Japan) , the Stuttgart Music Festival and the Riga Cathedral Concerts (Latvia).

As a soloist and also as a continuo player, Matthias Maierhofer has performed with ensembles such as the Dresden Kreuzchor, the Leipzig University Choir, the Graz Kantorei and the Dresden Staatskapelle. He participated in CD productions and publications for Edition Helbling, and there are recordings of his concerts on various radio stations and on the Ambitus label.

Professional background

From 2005 to 2009 he was a church musician at the Catholic parish church of St. Albertus Magnus in Freiburg, where he also taught as Martin Schmeding's assistant at the Academy for the Promotion of Talented Students at the Freiburg University of Music. In September 2009 he was appointed full-time artistic assistant at the “Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy” music academy in Leipzig, where he taught artistic organ and liturgical organ playing / improvisation. In 2013 Matthias Maierhofer succeeded Prof. Dr. Gerre Hancock was appointed professor of organ and church music at the University of Texas in Austin (USA), where he was appointed Dean's Fellow in 2015 for outstanding educational achievements and was awarded the Ducloux Fellowship of the College of Fine Arts.

In the summer semester of 2016, he accepted a call to the Freiburg University of Music and was also appointed cathedral organist of the Freiburg Minster .

Web links

• Website of cathedral organist Matthias Maierhofer
• International organ concerts in the Freiburg Cathedral