Michael Balke has established an international career across a broad operatic and symphonic repertoire. Recent and recurring engagements have taken him to the Royal Danish Opera, Semperoper Dresden, Arena di Verona, Theater an der Wien, Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz in Munich, National Opera Sofia and Theater St. Gallen, alongside appearances with orchestras throughout Europe, Asia and the United States.

Following his debut at the Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz in Munich in 2022, he was appointed First Guest Conductor from the 2023/24 season. His operatic repertoire ranges from Mozart, Rossini and Donizetti to Verdi, Puccini, Strauss and the 20th century, with a particular interest in rarely performed works of German Romanticism.

2026/27 SEASON

During the 2026/27 season, Michael Balke continues his close relationship with the Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz in Munich, where he serves as First Guest Conductor. His engagements there include Hänsel und Gretel, Die Zauberflöte and Verdi’s La traviata, culminating in a new production of Richard Strauss’ Ariadne auf Naxos, directed by Josef E. Köpplinger.

Internationally, Balke conducts Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte at the Göteborg Opera.

In October, he conducts the Ballet du Capitole and Orchestre national du Capitole de Toulouse in Maîtres américains, a programme featuring Balanchine’s The Four Temperaments to music by Hindemith and Peter Martins’ Fearful Symmetries to music by John Adams.

RECENT HIGHLIGHTS

Recent operatic highlights include his debut at the Theater an der Wien with Poulenc’s La voix humaine, as well as Elektra and Salome in Verona, La bohème at the Royal Danish Opera, Die Zauberflöte at the Semperoper Dresden and Don Carlo at the National Opera in Sofia.

His long-standing relationship with Theater St. Gallen has included productions of Die Fledermaus, Tosca, Faust and Il trovatore. Alongside the central operatic repertoire, Balke has championed rarely performed works including Schreker’s Die Gezeichneten and Franz Schmidt’s Notre Dame.

On the concert stage, he has worked with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, Copenhagen Philharmonic, Orchestra of the Arena di Verona, Residentie Orkest The Hague, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, MDR-Sinfonieorchester, Münchner Rundfunkorchester, Latvian National Symphony Orchestra, Taiwan Philharmonic, Osaka Philharmonic and Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra. His concert appearances include the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre, KKL Luzern, Alte Oper Frankfurt and Elbphilharmonie Hamburg.

Balke has collaborated with singers including Ludovic Tézier, Lawrence Brownlee, Juan Diego Flórez and Marina Rebeka, as well as instrumental soloists including Midori and Jean-Yves Thibaudet.

From 2011 to 2016, he served as Deputy General Music Director at Theater Magdeburg, and from 2018 to 2021 as Principal Guest Conductor at Theater St. Gallen. His complete recording of La traviata, with Marina Rebeka, Charles Castronovo and George Petean, earned him Opus Klassik nominations for Conductor of the Year and Young Artist of the Year in 2020.

Before devoting himself fully to conducting, Michael Balke trained as a pianist and enjoyed an extensive career as a chamber musician and song accompanist.