After an intensive search and numerous discussions with potential candidates, Bayreuth Festival announced that Thomas Eitler-de Lint will be the new director of the Bayreuth Festival Choir, succeeding Eberhard Friedrich, who will reach retirement age in 2025. Thomas Eitler-de Lint has held responsible positions at the Vienna Volksoper, the Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam, various radio choirs such as WDR, NDR, MDR, the opera houses in Zurich and Hanover, and in 2016 also as guest choir director at the Shanghai Opera. Since November 2017, he has been Choir Director at the Leipzig Opera, with numerous rehearsals including “Tosca”, “Carmen”, “La fanciulla del west”, “La traviata”, “Die Frau ohne Schatten”, and “St. John Passion”. At WAGNER 22 – the Wagner Festival Days of the Leipzig Opera, Thomas Eitler-de Lint was responsible for rehearsing all of Richard Wagner’s operas with choir participation and possesses proven Wagner expertise. Furthermore, he stands for a sound that is highly valued in Bayreuth. Regarding the future of the Festival Choir, the artistic director and Thomas Eitler-de Lint agree on creating a new structure that will fully meet the high demands of the Festival, both quantitatively (up to 134 choristers depending on the work) and qualitatively. Mr. Eitler-de Lint sees the restructuring as an opportunity and, above all, as contemporary.
We are very much looking forward to our time together!
Thomas Eitler-de Lint is the New Choir Director of the Bayreuth Festival Choir!
