MENTORS
Olaf Bär
Olaf Bär is a German baritone renowned for his interpretation of lied and opera. He trained at the Hochschule für Musik in Dresden and made his debut in 1981. Between 1985 and 1991, he was a member of the Semperoper in Dresden, establishing himself as one of the great lyric baritones of his time. His international career has taken him to stages such as Covent Garden, Vienna, Milan, and Glyndebourne, working with conductors like John Eliot Gardiner and Georg Solti. His voice has been compared to that of Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. In addition to his operatic career, he has recorded works by Bach, Brahms, Schubert, and Wagner, among others. He is also active as a teacher, sharing his experience with young singers and contributing to the training of new generations.
Wolfgang Holzmair

Wolfgang Holzmair is an Austrian baritone acclaimed for his expressive interpretations of lieder and opera. He studied in Vienna with Hilde Rössel-Majdan and Erik Werba, and earned a master’s degree from the Mozarteum University Salzburg. His international career includes recitals in London, New York, Moscow, and Seoul, and operatic roles in works by Mozart, Wagner, Strauss, Debussy, and Britten. He has performed with leading orchestras such as the Berlin Philharmonic and the Cleveland Orchestra, under conductors like Boulez, Haitink, and Harnoncourt. His recordings focus on Schubert, Mahler, French mélodie, and music by composers persecuted under the Nazi regime. Since 1998, he has taught at the Mozarteum, where he became professor of interpretation and stylistics. He regularly gives masterclasses across Europe and North America and is a Fellow of the Royal College of Music in London. In recent years, he has focused on mentoring young singers and curating recital programs with historical and artistic depth.
Wolfram Rieger
Wolfram Rieger studied at the Hochschule für Musik in Munich with Erik Werba and Helmut Deutsch, and attended several masterclasses with Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Hans Hotter and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. He began teaching at the Munich Hochschule in 1991 while still a student. In 1998 he became a professor at the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler in Berlin and regularly holds masterclasses throughout Europe and Japan. He is frequently invited to important venues and festivals around the world, such as the Feldkirch and Vilabertran Schubertiades, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, London’s Wigmore Hall, and the Vienna Musikverein. He has accompanied Brigitte Fassbaender, Barbara Bonney, Juliane Banse, Michelle Breedt, Thomas Hampson, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Matthias Goerne, and Thomas Quasthoff, among others.
