Ralf Otto

A fascination with choral music and cultivating the rich heritage of sacred music are the driving forces behind Ralf Otto’s artistic work. From the beginning, the key considerations in his work have included tonal flexibility, varied color and transparency. For Ralf Otto, clearly conveying the compositional structure of each and every work is an essential prerequisite for a deeper expression of the music. To achieve this, he demands a high measure of professional sensitivity and concentration from his choir and orchestra in both rehearsal and performance. His hallmark is a refusal to compromise on matters concerning the perfection of the sound. Ralf Otto has achieved major national and international success with the Vokalensemble Frankfurt, which he founded in 1980, before being appointed conductor of the Bachchor Mainz in 1986. He was professor of choral conducting at the Folkwang Hochschule in Essen from 1990–2006, and now holds a similar position at the Hochschule für Musik in Mainz. In addition, Otto has previously worked regularly with the Munich Bach Choir and the radio choruses of Norddeutscher Rundfunk and Westdeutscher Rundfunk. He is also much in demand as an orchestral conductor, which has led to guest conducting engagements with several renowned ensembles, including the Polish Chamber Philharmonic, Philharmonia Hungarica, Munich Radio Orchestra, Württemberg Chamber Orchestra Heilbronn, Junge Deutsche Philharmonie, L’arpa festante Munich and Concerto Köln. Otto was chief conductor of the Hesse State Youth Symphony Orchestra from 1998– 2000.