(Credit: © Guido Werner)

Germany’s Hofer Symphoniker has announced the appointment of Martijn Dendievel as chief conductor from the 2024-25 season.

The Belgian conductor has repeatedly conducted the orchestra as a guest conductor and his appointment by the artistic director Cora Bethke and the commercial director Oliver Geipel was met with broad approval from the musicians. The position of chief conductor of the Hofer Symphoniker was vacant for over 20 years. Dendievel’s initial contract will be for four seasons.

In response to his appointment, he said, “I am extremely happy to be able to deepen my relationship with the Hofer Symphoniker in the near future and look forward to the concert experiences together. As so often in life, things come together – by accident or not: I attended my first master class in conducting in 2012 at the Brussels Music Academy with Daniel Klajner, then principal guest conductor of the Hofer Symphoniker. In 2018, I conducted my first public concert with a professional German orchestra – the Hofer Symphoniker. Later they were the first orchestra to invite me as guest conductor. We have been working together regularly since 2021, so when I was asked whether I would like to have a closer connection with the orchestra as its chief conductor, there was only one answer that I didn’t have to think long about.”

He added, “It is a great fortune to work with musicians whose everyday life is characterized by great diversity – be it on the concert stage, in the opera, where a special sensitivity to changes in tempo and dynamics is required, which I as a conductor find great freedom of design, or when teaching. These different competencies create a unique ensemble and I am honored to be able to direct it from the 2024/25 season. I can hardly wait to get involved in the field of music education for young and old and in cooperation with the music school in addition to conducting the symphony concerts. I am deeply grateful to the management and the orchestra for the trust they have placed in me at the beginning of my career.”

Dendievel will open his first season as chief conductor with Tchaikovsky’s “Manfred” symphony.