On May 31, 2026, Volksoper Wien Choral director Holger Kristen died at the age of 47.

Born in Horn, Lower Austria, Austria, Kristen sang at the age of nine in his father’s choir, where he later gained conducting experience. He also received trumpet and piano lessons at the music Musikschule Retz. After a year of singing lessons at the Diözesankonservatorium in Vienna, he began studying singing pedagogy with a focus on conducting with Professors Thunhart and Glassner at the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst in Vienna in 2002.

Kristen went on study orchestral conducting in the class of Professor Georg Mark at the Konservatorium Wien Privatuniversität and made his conducting debut with the Bratislava Symphony Orchestra.

He went on to found the choir coro.con.brio, with which he performed extensively and later gained experience as a singer in the Arnold Schoenberg Choir, the Vienna Chamber Choir, the Chorus sine nomine, and at the Neue Oper Wien. He worked with the Salzburg Bach Choir, the Chorus Sine Nomine, and the Vienna Academic Orchestra.

In 2012, Kristen was appointed Deputy Chorus Director and Stage Conductor at the Volksoper Wien, where he oversaw more than 1,600 performances during his 14 years with the company.

In a statement, the company said, “The Volksoper mourns the loss of a highly esteemed and beloved colleague and friend. We will miss Holger Kristen dearly. He was incredibly kind, proper, and collegial. His friendliness, his professionalism, and his warm personality will always be remembered. Our thoughts are with him and his family.”