Praised for his “impassioned leadership” (The Wall Street Journal) and “meticulous presentation” (OperaWire), American conductor James Gaffigan is known worldwide for his equal prowess as a conductor of symphony orchestras and opera. Starting with the 2023/2024 season, Gaffigan holds the rare distinction of leading two very different top European opera houses, embarking on his new role as General Music Director at Komische Oper Berlin this season while continuing in his post as Music Director of Spain’s Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía, home to the Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana.
With Komische Oper Berlin, Gaffigan takes on leadership of the orchestra through the summer of 2027. Speaking to OperaWire on his appointment, Gaffigan commented, “I am proud to be able to shape this institution in the future as General Music Director and a member of the artistic management team, together with the wonderful orchestra and the entire ensemble. I am grateful that I have been able to enjoy an intensive education and cultural experience since my early childhood, which would not have been possible without the public education system of the city of New York, since I inherently lacked the means. I, therefore, also see my task of giving something back with this gift. I’m looking forward to doing that at the Komische Oper Berlin.”
Gaffigan’s inaugural season with Komische Oper Berlin begins Friday, December 8, 2023 with 1923, A Documentary Symphonic Concert – a program celebrating works by Bartók, Walter Kollo and Darius Milhaud that all premiered in 1923. His season continues December 15, 2023 to January 21, 2024 with Tchaikovsky’s lyric opera Eugene Onegin, along with a New Year’s Concert featuring two Turkish superstar musicians, Cem Adrian and Fazıl Say. From January 28, 2024 to March 20, 2024, Gaffigan leads Komische Oper Berlin in Rimsky-Korsakov’s The Golden Cockerel. On Saturday, February 10, 2024, he conducts Bowie Meets Bruckner, a program juxtaposing two “masters of opulence”: the 19th-century Austrian composer and the British glam rocker, who recorded his landmark album Heroes in Berlin and had close ties to the city. Bringing a unique ambiance to the occasion, this program will be held at Berlin’s Vollgutlager, an industrial-style artistic space constructed on the site of the former Kindl Brewery.
From March 15 to April 13, 2024, Gaffigan goes on to conduct Wagner’s Der Fliegende Holländer (The Flying Dutchman). On Friday, March 22, 2024 he leads a Children’s Concert featuring works by Gershwin, Liszt and Edward MacDowell. On Friday, April 12, 2024 he conducts Go East!, a program dedicated to the composers of eastern Germany, from Bach to Siegfried Matthus, esteemed composer of the mid-20th century’s divided Germany. Gaffigan’s season with Komische Oper Berlin closes April 27 through May 26, 2024, with Mozart’s Le Nozze Di Figaro, directed by the multi-award-winning Kirill Serebrennikov – recently noted for continuing to direct remotely while serving a two-year house arrest in Moscow, widely seen as state retaliation for his liberal and pro-LGBTQ stances.
James Gaffigan 2023-2024 Komische Oper Berlin Calendar
Friday, December 8, 2023
Komische Oper Berlin Symphonic: 1923, A Documentary Symphonic Concert
Berlin, Germany
Link: https://www.komische-oper-berlin.de/en/what/schedule/2023-12/1923/317/
December 15, 2023 – January 21, 2024
Komische Oper Berlin: Eugene Onegin
Berlin, Germany
Link: https://www.komische-oper-berlin.de/en/what/schedule/eugene-onegin/421/
Monday, January 1, 2024
Komische Oper Berlin: New Years’ Concert
Berlin, Germany
Link: https://www.komische-oper-berlin.de/en/what/schedule/2024-01/hudson-seine-und-bosporus/417/
January 28 – March 20, 2024
Komische Oper Berlin: The Golden Cockerel
Berlin, Germany
Link: https://www.komische-oper-berlin.de/en/what/schedule/the-golden-cockerel/389/
Saturday, February 10, 2024
Komische Oper Berlin: Bowie Meets Bruckner
Berlin, Germany
Link: https://www.komische-oper-berlin.de/en/what/schedule/2024-02/bowie-meets-bruckner/320/
March 15 – April 13, 2024
Komische Oper Berlin: Der Fliegende Holländer
Berlin, Germany
Link: https://www.komische-oper-berlin.de/spielplan/kalender/der-fliegende-hollaender/214/
Friday, March 22, 2024
Komische Oper Berlin: Children’s Concert
Berlin, Germany
Link: https://www.komische-oper-berlin.de/en/what/schedule/2024-03/playing-with-colours/319/
Friday, April 12, 2024
Komische Oper Berlin: Go East!
Berlin, Germany
Link: https://www.komische-oper-berlin.de/en/what/schedule/siko-go-east/324/
April 27 – May 26, 2024
Komische Oper Berlin: Le Nozze Di Figaro
Berlin, Germany
Link: https://www.komische-oper-berlin.de/spielplan/a-z/le-nozze-di-figaro/
