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Kerstin Altka@karstenwitt.com+49 30 214 594 -235
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Simon Bode talks about his wanderlust for musical journeys.
Benjamin Britten, Saint Nicolas, Op. 42
Simon Bode, tenor
Symphoniker Hamburg
Kantorei St. Jacobi, choir
Gerhard Löffler
Bode has a beautiful instrument, resonant and flexible which lifts and navigates effortlessly in his middle and higher registers. Bachtrack, 2022
Hamburg born Simon Bode appears at prestigious opera houses and concert halls around the globe, and he is equally beloved for his warm, bright timbre as for his forthright stage presence and distinguished artistry. The tenor is a frequent guest at prestigious international festivals including the Salzburger Festspiele, Bregenzer Festspiele, Beethovenfest Bonn, Elbphilharmonie, Heidelberger Frühling, Kissinger Sommer, Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Schleswig-Holstein, and Schlossfestpiele Ludwigsburg.
He collaborates with many of the world’s leading conductors including Constantinos Carydis, Alan Gilbert, HK Gruber, Joana Mallwitz, Andrew Manze, Andrea Marcon, Kent Nagano, Esa-Pekka Salonen, and Sebastian Weigle. Simon Bode has also appeared with such distinguished orchestras as the Wiener Philharmoniker, Ensemble Modern, Los Angeles Philharmonic, NDR Radiophilharmonie, Münchner Rundfunkorchester, and Les Talens Lyrique. His broad range of repertoire spans from the Bach Passions and Masses of Mozart, Haydn, and Schubert, to works written by many eminent living composers.
In the 2024/25 season he continues his focus on Bach, going on tour with the RIAS Kammerchor and Justin Doyle performing Bach Cantatas and the Magnificat in Belgium, Germany and Switzerland, having already toured with them with the Johannes-Passion during the previous season. He will also sing Bach’s Matthäus-Passion in St Jacobi in Hamburg and appear in chamber concerts at the Molyvos International Music Festival in Greece. Performances of Mozart’s Requiem will take him to the Boston Symphony Orchestra for the first time.
Simon Bode has given highly praised recital performances at the Pierre Boulez Saal in Berlin, the Rheingau Musik Festival, and on numerous occasions at Wigmore Hall. His frequent collaborators include pianists Igor Levit, Graham Johnson, Simon Lepper, and Nicholas Rimmer as well as accordionist Elsbeth Moser. He was Artist in Residence at Wigmore Hall in the 2022/23 season, performing three recitals: Winterreise with Simon Lepper; Die schöne Müllerin accompanied by Igor Levit; and a varied programme of art song in collaboration with Jonathan Ware.
Highlights of the recent past include Rachmaninov’s The Bells with the Los Angeles Philharmonic led by Gustavo Dudamel, Bach’s Johannes-Passion with Christoph Prégardien and the Kammerorchester Basel and RIAS Kammerchor, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with Maxim Emelyanychev and the Münchner Philharmoniker, and the world premiere of Alex Nante’s Mystérion with the Orchestre National de Lille conducted by Ben Glassberg. He has appeared at the Salzburger Festspiele in a revival of the Lydia Steier production of Die Zauberflöte under the baton of Joana Mallwitz. The tenor made his Carnegie Hall recital debut in autumn 2023 accompanied by Jonathan Ware in a program of Wagner, Duparc, Liszt, and Wolf. During the same season he also sang Weill’s Die sieben Todsünden with the Konzerthausorchester Berlin and Joana Mallwitz and Luigi Nono’s Il canto sospeso with the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchester and Jonathan Stockhammer.
Simon Bode and his frequent musical partner, Igor Levit, have given recitals at Kissinger Sommer, Alte Oper Frankfurt, Wigmore Hall, and at Vienna’s Musikverein, which marked the tenor’s debut in the famed Goldener Saal; recital appearances with Simon Lepper brought the artists to leading presenters throughout Germany and England.
While a member of the ensembles of Oper Frankfurt and the Staatsoper Hannover, Simon Bode received several nominations for ‘Young Singer of the Year’ from Opernwelt and recent engagements include performances at Norwegian National Opera, Opéra national de Bordeaux, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Göttingen International Handel Festival, Staatsoper Hannover, Theater Basel, and Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden. He sings principal tenor roles by Britten, Handel, Haydn, Mozart, Poulenc, R. Strauss, and Wagner.
A scholar and recipient of numerous academic and performance prizes and awards, Simon Bode worked in Hanover with Charlotte Lehmann and now studies in New York with Neil Semer.
2024/25 season
This biography is to be reproduced without any changes, omissions or additions, unless expressly authorised by the artist management.
Fin de Siècle
Recital with Igor Levit, pianoG. Mahler: Five songs after poems by Friedrich RückertF. Schubert: Du bist die Ruh (Rückert) and other songsR. Strauss: Heimliche Aufforderung (from Op. 27) and other songs (Op. 10, Op. 39)G. Mahler: Songs from Des Knaben Wunderhorn
Full programme available here.
Beethoven & Belcanto
Recital with Simon Lepper, pianoL. v. Beethoven: An die ferne Geliebte, Op. 98F. Schubert: Various songs (sung in Italian)G. Rossini: La partenzaV. Bellini: Ma rendi pur contentoG. Donizetti: Il pescatore L. v. Beethoven: Various songs
Details and further programmes on request.
“Among the singers, tenor Simon Bode is particularly convincing, delivering the roles of Amor Ragionevole (sensible love) and Amor Volubile (fleeting love) with freshness and fantasy.”
Opernwelt, Anna Schors, August 2023 – on L’Huomo with Dorothee Oberlinger
“There was no sign of novelty for its own sake, but of considered, intelligent, highly dramatic performances that took wing in the heat and light of the moment. […] In that song’s second stanza [Am Feierabend], Bode varied his tone with such quicksilver intelligence – colour, vibrato, and much else – that song and story sounded as if invented before our ears. […] Both musicians proved outstanding guides not only to the journey, but to its landscape, physical and metaphysical. Heartbreaking.”
Seenandheard-international.com, Mark Berry, 14 January 2023 – on Die schöne Müllerin, performed with Igor Levit at Wigmore Hall
“Bode has a beautiful instrument, resonant and flexible which lifts and navigates effortlessly in his middle and higher registers.”
Bachtrack, Chanda VanderHart, May 2022 – on the Vienna Musikverein debut
“The soloists are well tuned to each other […] even in pairs they sound like an intimate small choir, emanating much poetry and euphony. It is a pleasure to listen to them.”
operalounge.de, Rüdiger Winter – on Schumann Lied Edition, Vol. 10: Romances, Ballads and Duets (Naxos 8.574119, 2021)
“The highlight of the evening […]. Incredibly sympathetic and warm-heartedly performed with youthful charm, [Bode] sings Freddy with a gorgeous, supple tenor, wonderfully modulating between delicate piani and powerful fortissimi that go straight to the hearts of the audience.”
Kulturfelder.de, Hildegard Wiecker, 7 January 2020
“When tenor Simon Bode comes onstage as Freddy, Eliza’s admirer, the music became magnificent. Bode’s voice radiates a charisma and intensity that requires no reinforcement.”
Bachtrack.com, Sarah Schnoor, 6 January 2020
“The discovery of the evening is the young tenor Simon Bode. In his supporting role as Eliza’s admirer Freddy, he shows a flair for the Broadway sound, drawing out the melodic lines with a flourish while also proving he’s earned his operatic credentials with Mozart.”
Hamburger Abendblatt, 1 January 2020
“Tenor Simon Bode delighted with Vaughan Williams’s cycle On Wenlock Edge, a highlight of lieder singing.”
Hamburger Abendblatt, 21 October 2019
“Anna Palimina and Simon Bode both produce gorgeous legato lines, which blend lyricism with a tinge of sadness. […] Occasionally, you listen to a piece of music and come away with the feeling that you have discovered a rare treasure which deserves to be known much more widely. That is certainly the case with these cycles. The performers are all to be commended for the exceptionally high quality of the singing and playing.”
musicweb-international.com, Robert Beattie, June 2019 – on Schumann Lied Edition, Vol. 8: Spanisches Liederspiel, Minnespiel (excerpts) & Spanische Liebeslieder (Naxos 8.573944, 2019)
“Simon Bode’s repertoire choice was unsual and was delivered by such commanding mastery that no future appearance should be missed. Here is a singer with the gift of a beautiful voice and confident stage presence.”
Serenade Magazine, Fareed Curmally, 30 April 2019 – on a song recital at Wigmore Hall, London
“It’s rare to hear this cycle performed with such gripping immediacy […] with such attention to the text, such clear articulation by this tenor from Hamburg. […] Bode firmly but never forcefully conveys the shifting emotions of this ultimately doomed paramour in a clear, powerful, bright-to-the-core voice, with a broad array of colours, gleaming high notes, subtle lyricism and an elegant pianissimo.”
Bayerische Staatszeitung, Renate Freyeisen, 12 July 2018 – on Die schöne Müllerin at Kissinger Sommer festival
“Another reason for the premiere’s resounding musical success is the young singer Simon Bode. A highly cultivated lyric tenor with exemplary pronunciation, he was perfectly cast not just vocally but also has a formidable and thrilling stage presence.”
Darmstädter Echo, October 2017 – on Eine Winterreise (Schubert/Zender) at Staatstheater Wiesbaden
“A stellar evening of artful singing…”
Frankfurter Neue Presse, August 2017 – on Die schöne Müllerin at Rheingau Musikfestival
“Equally astonishing is the tenor voice of Simon Bode (Orfeo), who effortlessly lends clear yet nuanced shading even to the highest registers of his nimble voice.”
Göttinger Tageblatt, June 2017 – on Haydn’s Orfeo at Internationale Händel-Festspiele Göttingen
“Of special mention is the German tenor, Simon Bode, with an incredibly warm timbre as Don Ottavio.”
musikundtheater.ch, January 2017 – on Don Giovanni at Theater Basel
“There were outstanding performances from Kiandra Howarth […] and Simon Bode, who was touching in the role of Ottavio, shaping his arias into delicate, soaring declarations of love.”
Badische Zeitung, January 2017 – on Don Giovanni at Theater Basel
“Louise Alder and Simon Bode together ignite sparks as the young bohemians […]”
Gramophone Magazine, 2017 – on Der Graf von Luxemburg (Oehms Classics)
“For the full two hours Bode remains clear, present, and open amid the high demands of the piece – an exceptional singer and evangelist!”
Wiesbadener Kurier, April 2016 – on Bach’s St John Passion
“Political music theatre lives on! Simon Bode is not only equipped with a melodious and effortlessly lyrical tenor, but has a mesmerising gift for performance […]”
omm.de, Ursula Decker-Bönninger, 2015 – on Der goldene Drache
“Simon Bode […] is already an aristocrat in Mozart Style – a name to be watched. I haven’t enjoyed an Entführung as much in decades […]”
Opera Magazine, Hugh Canning, 2012 – on Die Entführung aus dem Serail at Oper Frankfurt
“Bode’s performance of another Wolf favourite, An eine Äolsharfe, is sung with masterly legato […]”
BBC Music Magazine, January 2012 – on Brahms: The Complete Songs, Vol. 3 (Hyperion CDJ33123, 2011)
“His tone is crystal-clear, his phrasing always thoughtful […] the haunted and little-known Lerchengesang brings one of the loveliest performances […] Wiegenlied is as dulcet as one would hope […]”
Gramophone, Richard Wigmore, February 2012 – on Brahms: The Complete Songs, Vol. 3 (Hyperion CDJ33123, 2011)
Beethoven: Neue Liebe, neues Leben, Op. 75 Nr. 2
R. Vaughan Williams: On Wenlock Edge
from On Wenlock EdgeElbphilharmonie, HamburgSimon Bode (tenor), Elisabeth Brauß (piano), Albrecht Menzel (violin), Won-Ho Kim (violin), Silas Zschocke (viola), Mark Schumann (cello)
R. Vaughan Williams: Oh, when I was in love with you
Simon Bode (Amor) and others, Ensemble 1700, Dorothee Oberlinger
deutsche harmonia mundi 19638892092, 2024
Katharine Mehrling, Simon Bode, Michael Porter, Michael Nagl, Oliver Zwarg, Konzerthausorchester Berlin, Joana Mallwitz
Deutsche Grammophon, 2024
Simon Bode, Caroline Melzer, Ulrich Eisenlohr
Naxos 8.574261, 2022
Caroline Melzer, Anke Vondung, Simon Bode, Ulrich Eisenlohr
Naxos 8.574119, 2021
Simon Bode, Anna Palimina, Marion Eckstein, Matthias Hoffman, Stefan Irmer, Ulrich EisenlohrNaxos 8.573944, 2019
Simon Bode, Daniel Behle, Camilla Nylund, Louise Alder a.o.
OehmsClassics OC 968, 2017
Simon Bode (tenor), Christel Lee (violin), Igor Levit (piano)
Deutsche Stiftung Musikleben, 2017
Simon Bode a.o., Frankfurter Opern- und Museumsorchester, Sebastian Weigle (conductor)
OehmsClassics OC 942, 2013
Simon Bode a.o., Opern- & Museumsorchester Frankfurt, Sebastian Weigle (conductor)
OehmsClassics OC 015, 2012
Simon Bode, Nina Tarandek, Christian Miedl, Roland Schneider, Ensemble Algoritmo, Marco Angius
Stradivarius STR33900, 2011
Simon Bode (tenor), Graham Johnson (piano)
Hyperion CDJ33123, 2011