(Credit: Christina von Prohaska)

The Salzburg Festival has announced the appointment of Kristina Hammer as the new president of the Festival.

The decision was made unanimously by the Salzburg Festival Supervisory Board on Nov. 24, 2021.

Hammer will take over her new position on Jan. 1, 2022, and the contract will be valid for the initial period of 5 years, through Dec. 31, 2026.

“The decision to appoint Kristina Hammer the new president of the Salzburg Festival is a conscious step taken by the Board in order to further internationalize the Salzburg Festival, to secure, hone and expand the special radiance associated with the Salzburg Festival brand and demonstrate the determination to rise to and master new challenges facing the Salzburg Festival as the world’s leading classical three-genre festival. Her successful career, her ability to integrate, her long-term connection with the Salzburg Festival and her cultural track record as a board member of the Friends of the Zurich Opera convinced us to make this decision,” said Landeshauptmann Wilfried Haslauer in an official press statement.

“I am deeply honored by the trust the Board has placed in me, and I look forward to this great and responsible task, which I approach with the necessary humility. I would like to thank all the members of the Board as well as Markus Hinterhäuser and Lukas Crepaz, whom I was able to meet as part of the application process. I look forward to working productively with them and all the Festival staff, and of course to the artists,” said Hammer of the appointment.

The Board expressed its gratitude to Helga Rabl-Stadler for her 27-year long tenure as the president of the Salzburg Festival.