| Stefanie Schennerlein
The Saxon Wind Philharmonic starts the new year with a new chief conductor
Peter Sommerer takes over from Thomas Clamor
The Saxon Wind Philharmonic has a new chief conductor and artistic director since January 1st, 2021. Peter Sommerer takes over the baton from Prof. Thomas Clamor, who left the orchestra at his own request to take on new professional challenges. Peter Sommerer was the orchestra's preferred candidate. After he briefly took over three New Year's concerts of the abo-concerts in Bad Lausick in January 2020 on the recommendation of the conductor Stefan Diederich, it was love at first sight, so to speak: “The first rehearsal with the orchestra was wonderful. Concentrated, with musical ease, well versed in the repertoire, but open to new things, demands on oneself, on the conductor, humorous and personable, well-knowing who we are doing this for: our audience. ", said Sommerer about his first meeting with the orchestra . Further guest engagements were agreed for 2020, some of which - due to corona - had to be canceled. After abo-concerts in Bad Lausick and Bad Düben in Autumn 2020, the Saxon Wind Philharmonic and Peter Sommerer decided to go onto new musical ways together in the future. After studying at the Vienna University of Music, the Austrian conductor held various assistant positions at large opera houses, such as the Vienna State Opera, Semperoper in Dresden, Berlin State Opera or at the National Opera in Munich. He continued his career as capellmeister before becoming General Music Director at the Schleswig-Holstein State Theater. Peter Sommerer has been working as freelancer since 2019 and he performs internationally as guest conductor. Engagements have taken him to different countries in Europe, Mexico, the Middle East and Asia. Peter Sommerer also teaches as a lecturer in conducting and ensemble leading at the Lübeck University of Music. For the future, Peter Sommerer has set himself a few goals with which he would like to continue the success story of the Saxon Wind Philharmonic. “I would like to take this opportunity to expressly thanks to my predecessor, Prof. Thomas Clamor, for allowing me to start with a grown, established orchestral structure which has also been won through orchestral initiatives. It enables me to plan innovative projects ”. The presence of the orchestra in the region is to him very important, the districts of the Cultural Area of the orchestra (district of Leipzig Province and Northern Saxony), to expand the previous abo-concert series for the audience and to develop new concert formats, children, maintaining school formats and expanding the audience and fan radius - if possible again - as a musical ambassador for the region through more intensive travel. "Together with the new managing director, Falk Hartig, I am looking forward to an innovative, future-oriented, artistically demanding time!"