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The Austrian bass-baritone, Andreas Lebeda, took up his musical training and debut appearances in Steyr. In 1975 he began studies at the University of Salzburg in German philology and at the Mozarteum in Music Education, Conducting, Voice, and Piano. He studied with Nikolaus Harnoncourt at the Mozarteum and with René Jacobs at the Schola Cantorum in Basel. From 1987 until 1991 he was a student of Kurt Widmer in Basel. He also participated in master-classes with Elisabeth Schwarzkopf and Kurt Widmer.
A seasoned performer, Andreas Lebeda has appeared with numerous orchestras and with opera companies. He is a specialist in the lieder and oratorio repertoire. He has presented numerous 'liederabends' at various venues throughout Europe. He made his American debut in February 1999 at Dumbarton Oaks in Washington, DC in a special 'liederabend' honoring the 250th anniversary of the birth of the poet Johannes Wolfgang von Goethe; the program included lieder by Schubert, Robert Schumann, Johannes Brahms and Hugo Wolf, all settings of Goethe texts. A favourite at festivals, he has appeared at the Sémaine Sainte Arles, Festival Barocco Viterbo, Festwochen der Alten Musik Innsbruck, Festival Moulin d'Andé, Bregenzer Frühling, Brahms!Fest Mürzzuschlag, Sorø-Festival (Denmark), and Printemps des Arts in Monte Carlo, among others.
Andreas Lebeda has led a vocal class since 1992 at the Bruckner Conservatory in Linz. He has taught at the Mozarteum in Salzburg since 1982. He is the founder and leader of the ensemble Kepler-Konsort which is based in Linz. Particularly interested in the repertoire of the Baroque, Classic and early Romantic periods, Andreas Lebeda's recordings include Monteverdi's L'incoronazione di Poppea and Heinrich Schütz's Weihnachtshistorie and Auferstehungshistorie for Harmonia Mundi France (both recordings directed by René Jacobs); J.S. Bach's Christmas Oratorio (BWV 248) for Fabian Records; the same composer's cantata Himmelkönig, sei willkommen (BWV 182) for Symphonia Records; the music drama L'origine di Jaromeriz in Moravia by the Czech composer Frantisek Václav Míca on the Supraphon label; and Franz Schubert's Winterreise, a recording available through the Tiroler Landesmuseum Ferdinandeum in Innsbruck, Austria. His recording of Mozart's Grabmusik (Passion Cantata) K 42 with Ars Antiqua Austria and the St. Florianer Sängerknaben has recently been released on the Chesky Records label.
Currently residing in Vienna, Andreas Lebeda's recent performance schedule in Europe included engagements in Vienna, Salzburg, Linz, Passau, Berlin, Bregenz, Mürzzuschlag and in France at Moulin d'Andé. He made his American orchestral debut in February 2000 singing Gustav Mahler's Rückert Lieder with the National Gallery Orchestra under the direction of George Manos. In January 2001 the artist made his New York debut at Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall under the auspices of the Austrian Cultural Institute in a program of lieder by 20th century Austrian composers including Hanns Eisler, Zemlinsky, Cerha, Wellesz, von Einem, and Krenek. In February, 2001 he returned to Washington, DC to sing Die schöne Magelone by J. Brahms at the Austrian Embassy; the program was repeated on a new series in Houston. |
