Justus Frantz

Justus Frantz was born in 1944 in Hohensalza (now Inowrocław, Poland). Began studying piano at the age of four with Professor Eliza Hansen. Later attended the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg, where he honed his skills under the tutelage of the legendary pianist Wilhelm Kempff.

In 1967 Justus Frantz became the youngest recipient of a scholarship from the German National Academic Foundation and won second prize at the ARD International Music Competition in Munich (in the chamber music category). This marked the beginning of a distinguished performing career, highlighted by his debuts with the Berliner Philharmoniker under Herbert von Karajan (1970) and the New York Philharmonic under Leonard Bernstein (1975). Has collaborated with eminent conductors such as Yehudi Menuhin, Rudolf Kempe, Sir Georg Solti, Seiji Ozawa, Sir Roger Norrington, Bernard Haitink, Dmitri Kitayenko, Mariss Jansons, Sir Colin Davis and Saulius Sondeckis.

He performs as a piano duo with Christoph Eschenbach. In the early 1980s, at the invitation of Sviatoslav Richter, they played Mozart’s complete works for piano four hands at the December Nights Festival in Moscow.

As a conductor he has led the Wiener Philharmoniker, the Münchner Philharmoniker, the Osaka Philharmonic, the KwaZulu-Natal Philharmonic Orchestra (Durban, South Africa), the London Symphony Orchestra, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Orchestre de Paris, the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, the Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Sinfonia Varsovia and the Philharmonia Hungarica as well as ensembles from Romania, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Armenia, Georgia, China, Japan and South Korea.

Justus Frantz has strong ties to Israel. Has conducted at the Red Sea Festival in Eilat (2011) and staged Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro with the Israeli Opera in the amphitheatre of Beit She’an. Since 2013 he has been Music Director and Principal Conductor of the Israel Sinfonietta Beer Sheva, the first German conductor to hold this position with an Israeli orchestra. Is deeply committed to building bridges between the diverse communities in Israel. One of his notable projects in this area involves performances by an international choir comprising Jewish, Muslim and Christian singers. Has also served as Artistic Director of the Spring in the Negev Festival since 2015.

He has frequently collaborated with Russian soloists and ensembles, including Valery Gergiev, Yuri Bashmet, Alena Baeva, Alexander Rudin, the Mariinsky Orchestra, the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Russia (Svetlanov Symphony Orchestra), the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, the State Symphony Orchestra Novaya Rossiya and the Moscow State Symphony Orchestra. Has conducted opera performances at the Mariinsky Theatre and served as the music director and conductor for productions of Die Zauberflöte (1993) and Le nozze di Figaro (1994). In 2006 he led a performance of Mozart’s Requiem at the Stars of the White Nights Festival. In 2008 the artist conducted the Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra at the opening of the International Sviatoslav Richter Piano Competition in Moscow. In 2017 he led a performance of Orff’s Carmina Burana at the International Mariinsky Far East Festival in Vladivostok. In July 2022 Justus Frantz conducted the Mariinsky Orchestra in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. Since 2022 he has been a regular guest conductor at the Mariinsky Theatre, leading performances of works by Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms and Dvořák. In February 2025 the artist’s solo piano concert, Mistakes in Music, took place at the Stravinsky Hall.

Justus Frantz is also renowned as an exceptional organiser. In 1986 he founded the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, serving as its Intendant for nine years and establishing it as one of the world’s leading music events. Was also a co-founder of the Festival Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and the inspiration behind the Rheingau Musik Festival.

Since 1999 he has been Artistic Director of the summer music forum, Finca Festival Frantz & Friends, held in the Canary Islands. His other projects include festivals around the world, including the first major festival of Russian music in Hamburg and a festival of new music in the USSR. In recent years he has been a regular guest at the International Festival of Sacred Music and Art in Rome.

Justus Frantz is the founder of the Felix Mendelssohn Society in Hamburg and the Johannes Brahms Society in Schleswig-Holstein. He initiated the renovation of the Königliches Kurtheater in Bad Wildbad, which has hosted the Bel Canto Opera Festival Rossini in Wildbad since 1989. His passion for music education has led to several television projects, including the programme Achtung! Klassik, for which he has received numerous awards. As the founder and director of the Freundschaftsbrücke (“Bridge of Friendship”) charitable humanitarian organisation he has implemented various projects in the USSR, Russia, the CIS countries, the Baltic states, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and Bulgaria.

One of Justus Frantz’ primary focuses is the discovery, training, and support of young talent. He gives numerous free concerts for young audiences every year. The Schleswig-Holstein Paul Hindemith Prize, which he established, has become one of the most prestigious awards for young composers.

Was a professor of piano at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg. In 1989 he co-founded (with Valery Gergiev) the Soviet-German Youth Philharmonic.

In 1995 Justus Frantz founded the Philharmonie der Nationen youth symphony orchestra, which brings together musicians from over forty countries. Under his baton the orchestra performed Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony in Berlin at a gala concert celebrating the work’s designation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The orchestra’s membership is constantly evolving, with Justus Frantz auditioning young musicians and discovering new talent during the ensemble’s tours. This has launched the international careers of many artists who have gone on to achieve global recognition, including the violinists Vadim Repin, Maxim Vengerov and Midori, whom Frantz invited to the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival; Anna Netrebko, who made her Mariinsky Theatre debut as Susanna in a production of Le nozze di Figaro under his direction; the Bulgarian violinist and composer Martin Panteleev; and the Hungarian violinist Lendvay József.

Since 1989 he has served as a Goodwill Ambassador for the UNHCR. Has received numerous awards in Germany, Spain, Russia, Israel, Lithuania and other countries, among them a BAMBI award, a GRAMMY award and the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany.
Information for February 2025