Vita
The soprano GUDRUN SIDONIE OTTO, currently living in the ”regio basiliensis”, fills her audience with enthusiasm by an “extraordinary clear and feminine timbre” (FonoForum 9/10) as well as by “her fresh and warm soprano” (Opernglas 2009) and is considered as one of the most versatile sopranos of her time: „Gudrun Sidonie Otto ... eine Klasse für sich.” (BZ Basel 2019)
After a coaching by Ricarda Merbeth, she graduated at the college of music HfM Franz Liszt in Weimar under the guidance of Mario Hoff, took classes with Klesie Kelly, Renate Biskup, Mira Zakai/ Tel Aviv, Sylvia Greenberg (opera), Dorothee Mields and Inga Virör (Baroque voice), Margit Legler and Reinhold Kubik (Baroque gesture/style), Karl-Peter Kammerlander, Julian Pike (Lied) and Ingrid Figur. At present she is coached by Stefan Haselhoff.
In 2007 she won the first prize (contemporary music) at the the Schloss Rheinsberg international singing competition. In 2004 she received a scholarship from the Komische Oper in Berlin. From 2004 to 2006/7 she was a member of the Landesbühnen Sachsen solo ensemble.
As a guest soloist Gudrun Sidonie Otto appeared at the Hannover State Opera, Würzburg Theatre, Halle Opera House and Nuremberg Opera. As Undine, Ännchen and Gretel she guested a.o. the Théâtre de Picardie and at the Staatstheater Am Gärtnerplatz in Munich, Grand Théâtre de la Ville Luxembourg, Prinzregententheater in Munich, Opéra National du Rhin in Strasbourg.
As a well known soloist in Early Music Gudrun Sidonie Otto was invited to many important festivals such as the Monaco Spring Festival, Istanbul Music Festival, Sydney Music Festival, Honkong Musik Festival, Schleswig-Holstein-Musik-Festival, Halle Handel Festival, International Herrenchiemsee Festspiele (2010–15), Musikfestspiele Potsdam Sanssouci, Telemannfestspiele Magdeburg, Dresdner Musikfestspiele, Europäisches Musikfest Stuttgart, Tage Alter Musik Regensburg and Gent, to Alte Oper Frankfurt, Vienna Konzerthaus, Gewandhaus Leipzig, Philharmonie Luxembourg, Philharmonie Strassbourg, Festspielhaus Baden-Baden and Beethoven-Fest Bonn and the prestigious Bach Festivals in Hamburg, Lausanne, Schaffhausen, Stuttgart, Oregon and Thüringen with conductors as Rolf Beck, Ivor Bolton, Gabriel Feltz, Robin Gritton, Peter Gülke, Theodor Guschlbauer, Ludwig Güttler, Enoch zu Guttenberg, Paul Goodwin, Alexander Grychtolik, Thomas Hengelbrock, Sir Neville Marriner, Luca Pianca, Helmuth Rilling, Klaas Stock. Many recordings and tv productions. She worked together with The New Dutch Academy, Cantus Cölln, Salzburger Hofmusik and Ensemble Amarcord. She gave masterclasses in Norway, South Tyrol, Granada, Sofia and HongKong. In the current season she is working together with the Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra, Staatskapelle Halle, Kammerorchester Basel, Il Gardellino and can be heard at the Bachfest Leipzig and at the KKL Luzern.
Her interpretation of contemporary music (Nono, Scelsi, Gubaidulina) was much acclaimed by critics. In 2019 the composers Daan Manneke and Zsigmond Szathmáry write solo pieces for her.