Anja Bihlmaier’s musical intuition, inspiring charisma and ability to combine passion with precision have made her one of the leading conductors of her generation. She has been Chief Conductor of the Residentie Orkest since August 2021.
In 2023/24 she debuts with the London Philharmonic, Frankfurt Radio Symphony, Hamburg Staatsorchester (including two concerts at the Elbphilharmonie), Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse, Bergen Philharmonic, Sydney Symphony and Melbourne Symphony orchestras, and returns to the Salzburg Camerata in her debut at the Mozartwoche. In Summer 2023 she made her first BBC Proms appearance (with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra).
In a wide-ranging repertoire that includes Haydn, Mahler, Strauss, B.A. Zimmermann to Sibelius, Bartók, Dvořák, Shostakovich, Debussy, Britten, Galina Ustvolskaya and Unsuk Chin, Bihlmaier has recently conducted the SWR Symphony, BBC Symphony, City of Birmingham Symphony, Spanish National, Barcelona Symphony, Finnish Radio Symphony, Danish National, Swedish Radio Symphony and Royal Stockholm Philharmonic orchestras, returning to many of these in the coming months.
A passionate opera conductor, Bihlmaier gained many years of experience through positions at the Hanover State Opera, the Chemnitz Theatre and the Kassel State Theatre. More recently she conducted Gounod Faust at Trondheim Opera, Britten A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Malmö Opera and several productions at the Vienna Volksoper, including Henry Mason’s acclaimed production of The Magic Flute in 2020/21. In February 2023 she conducted Wagner Der Fliegende Holländer in Tampere and in September Verdi La traviata at the Norske Opera in Oslo.
After studying at the Freiburg Hochschule für Musik with Scott Sandmeier, Bihlmaier was awarded a scholarship at the Salzburg Mozarteum and deepened her knowledge with Dennis Russell Davies and Jorge Rotter. She was subsequently accepted into the Deutsche Dirigentenforum and received a scholarship from the Brahmsgesellschaft Baden-Baden.