Manfred Honeck has firmly established himself as one of the world’s leading conductors, whose distinctive and revelatory interpretations receive great international acclaim. He is currently in his 17th year as Music Director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, where his contract runs through the 2027-2028 season. Together, they have continued a legacy of music-making that includes several Grammy nominations and a 2018 Grammy Award for Best Orchestral Performance. The most recent recording, Bruckner’s Symphony No. 7, paired with Resurrexit by Mason Bates, was released in July 2024 to great critical acclaim. Celebrated at home and abroad, Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra serve as cultural ambassadors for the city as one of the most frequently toured American orchestras. Their regular appearances abroad have taken them to the major European music capitals and leading festivals such as the BBC Proms in London, Musikfest Berlin, Lucerne Festival, and the Salzburg Festival.
Born in Austria, Manfred Honeck completed his musical training at the University of Music in Vienna. His many years of experience as a member of the viola section in the Vienna Philharmonic and Vienna State Opera Orchestra have had a lasting influence on his work as a conductor, and his art of interpretation is based on his determination to venture deep beneath the surface of the music. He began his conducting career as assistant to Claudio Abbado and as director of the Vienna Jeunesse Orchestra. Subsequently, he was engaged by the Zurich Opera House, where he was awarded the European Conducting Prize. He has since served as one of three principal conductors of the MDR Symphony Orchestra Leipzig, as Music Director of the Norwegian National Opera, Chief Conductor of the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra in Stockholm and Music Director of the Staatsoper Stuttgart. He has also been appointed Honorary Conductor by the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, following decades of close collaboration.
As a guest conductor, Manfred Honeck has worked with all leading international orchestras,
including Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Staatskapelle Dresden, Tonhalle-Orchester Zurich, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre de Paris, Accademia di Santa Cecilia Rome and the Vienna Philharmonic. In the United States, he has conducted all major orchestras, including New York Philharmonic, The Cleveland Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra and San Francisco Symphony. He has also a strong profile as opera conductor. His guest appearances include Semperoper Dresden, Royal Opera of Copenhagen, Theater an der Wien, the MET in New York, and the Salzburg Festival. Beyond the podium, he has designed a series of symphonic suites including Janáček’s Jenůfa, Strauss’s Elektra and Salome, Dvořák’s Rusalka, as well as Puccini’s Turandot, which he regularly performs around the globe.
Manfred Honeck holds honorary doctorates from several North American universities and was awarded the honorary title of Professor by the Austrian Federal President. An international jury of critics selected him as the International Classical Music Awards “Artist of the Year” 2018.
2024/25 Season
Please note: Biographies are based on information provided to the CSO by the artists or their representatives. More current information may be available on websites of the artists or their management.
