Benedikt Sauer is a German – Italian conductor. His repertoire includes, beside symphonic works, a vaste range of different operas with special focus on Verdi, Belcanto and Mozart, but also rarities like Schubert operas.
Beside his studies at Milan Conservatory, special operatic education by Carlo Franci and a postgraduate education in Kyiv (Alin Vlasenko), he participated at several masterclasses (Daniel Oren, Mikhail Jurowski, Riccardo Frizza, Donato Renzetti, Maurizio Arena, Jorma Panula, Lior Shambadal and courses
at the Bartók-Festival). He made his opera debut during his studies with “La Traviata” at Kurtheater Bad Ems in 2013, followed by “Le nozze di Figaro” 2014 , “Così fan tutte” 2017 and “Il Barbiere di Siviglia” 2018. In October 2016, he conducted an acclaimed “Don Giovanni” production at Ekhof-Theater Gotha. 2018 he lead the Opera Festival “Rossini and Schubert” at Kultursommer Rheinland-Pfalz. He further conducted various opera performances in Italy (“La Traviata”, “Cavalleria Rusticana”).
In April 2018 he conducted “Rigoletto” at Easter Festival Kyiv, where he returns regularly thanks to several projects. At the Teatro Sociale Bellinzona hehas conducted “La Traviata” in July 2021.
An intense collaboration links him with Opera Classica Europa and its academy as conductor and vocal coach, where he conducted concerts and various operas such as “La Bohème”, “Carmen”, “Don Pasquale”, “Così fan tutte”, “Die Zauberflöte”, “La Cenerentola”, “Die lustige Witwe”, “Nabucco” and “L’elisir d’amore”. In addition he worked as musical director, vocal coach and casting manager. Further, he has has been leading for many years a young artist program.
Benedikt Sauer has conducted various symphonic concerts in the Czech Republic, Italy, Germany
and Hungary; among others at the Festival Valle d’Itria (July 2023), Smetana Hall (August 2018), the State Theatre Usti Nad Labem (October 2018, April 2019) and the Teatro Nazionale Milano (December 2016) and several concerts of sacred music, paying particular attention to
historical informed performance. In 2023, he founded the Neapolitan chamber orchestra Ensemble Mercadante, which, after successful concerts, is now preparing new recordings of repertoire of the Neapolitan School.
He regularly works as assistant with conductors such as Riccardo Minasi, Gianluca Capuano and Oleg Caetani. He has also collaborated with Rinaldo Alessandrini and Mikhail Jurowski. As assistant he worked i.a. at Mariinsky Theatre St. Petersburg, Salzburger Festspiele and Teatro dell’Opera di Roma.
In addition to his musical endeavors, he graduated in Classics (B.A.) and History (M.A.) at the University of Bologna, presenting i.a. a thesis about German romanticism and its reflection in Pirandello. At the same time he has been collaborating at the new critical edition of “Norma” for Baerenreiter Edition.
