Andrè Schuen

The journey of baritone Andrè Schuen into the world of singing began in the picturesque village of La Val in South Tyrol, Italy. Growing up trilingual in Ladin, Italian, and German, his versatility continues to be reflected in his richly varied repertoire. Originally a passionate cellist, Schuen later chose to pursue vocal studies at the Mozarteum Salzburg under Professors Horiana Brănișteanu and Wolfgang Holzmair. After completing his studies, he spent the early years of his career as an ensemble member at Graz Opera. Today, he performs on the stages of major opera houses, concert halls, and lieder venues around the world.

In the operatic sphere, Schuen is in high demand at leading houses such as the Bavarian State Opera, Vienna State Opera, Royal Opera House Covent Garden, and Teatro Real Madrid, as well as at major festivals like Aix-en-Provence, Lucerne, and Salzburg. In the 2024-25 season, he reprised the role of Count Almaviva in Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro at both the Vienna State Opera (conducted by Ivor Bolton, directed by Barrie Kosky) and Zurich Opera House (conducted by Antonello Manacorda, directed by Jan Philipp Gloger). At Milan’s La Scala, he took on the role of Donner in a new production of Wagner’s Das Rheingold (conducted by Christian Thielemann, directed by David McVicar).

At the Salzburg Easter Festival in spring 2025, Schuen appeared in two productions: as Shaklovity in a new staging of Mussorgsky’s Khovanshchina (a co-production with the Metropolitan Opera, conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen, directed by Simon McBurney) and as a soloist in Mendelssohn’s Elijah with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra under Maxim Emelyanychev.

Schuen is equally at home in the concert hall. At the season opening of the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern, conducted by Chief Conductor Pietari Inkinen, he performed Mahler’s Songs of a Wayfarer. He sang a program of Mozart arias with the Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg under Roberto González-Monjas. Additionally, he performed Chausson’s song cycle Poème de l’amour et de la mer with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by González-Monjas and Manacorda, respectively. In the United States, he sang Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Boston Symphony Orchestra under Andris Nelsons and later with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra under Simon Rattle in Munich.

Past highlights include his debut at Carnegie Hall in Brahms’ German Requiem with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s under Bernard Labadie, performances at the Munich Opera Festival as Wolfram in Castellucci’s production of Tannhäuser, and as Sharpless in Puccini’s Madame Butterfly at the Royal Opera House in London. He also performed at Konzerthaus Berlin during Deutsche Grammophon’s 125th-anniversary celebration.

Lieder singing holds a special place in Schuen’s heart. This season, he and his piano partner Daniel Heide will perform Schubert’s Winterreise at the New Year Music Festival in Gstaad and present recitals in Madrid, Cáceres, and Barcelona. The duo regularly captivates audiences at major lieder venues such as Schubertíada Vilabertran, Heidelberg Spring Festival, and Rheingau Music Festival. Schuen has also given lieder recitals in the United States, including at Tanglewood and the Aspen Music Festival.

Schuen has received international acclaim for his recordings. Since 2021, the Ladin baritone has been an exclusive recording artist with Deutsche Grammophon. Following his recordings of Schubert’s Die Schöne Müllerin and Schwanengesang, which earned him the Opus Klassik Award, he completed the trilogy of Schubert’s late song cycles in May 2024 with Winterreise.