Ragna Schirmer, Hofkapelle München & Rüdiger Lotter
Biography Ragna Schirmer, Hofkapelle München & Rüdiger Lotter
Ragna Schirmer
has enjoyed the highest acclaim from concert audiences and critics for many years. Her interpretations are characterized by the art of nuance and a love of detail in the search for hidden historical and contemporary references. Numerous prizes and awards, including two wins at the International Johann Sebastian Bach Competition in Leipzig, testify to the pianist's consistent career. She was appointed Professor of Piano at the Zurich University of the Arts for the fall semester of 2025.
The artist's dramatic and programmatic talent can be seen in unusual projects. She enjoys demonstrating this in piano recitals hosted by herself, as well as in cross-genre music and theater productions written and directed especially for her: Blendwerk, premiered in 2012 with Christian Brückner, or the Ravel project Concert for a Deaf Soul with the Puppet Theater Halle, which has seen 125 performances over ten years. A marionette version of Oskar Schlemmer's Triadic Ballet was recorded as a television production in 2023 as part of the Mozart Festival in Würzburg.
One focus of her artistic work is the exploration of the life and work of Clara Wieck-Schumann. In 2015, the CD "Love in Variations" was released, about the relationships between Clara and Robert Schumann and Johannes Brahms. In 2017, an album, Clara, followed, featuring the Piano Concerto Op. 7. In the Clara Schumann Year of 2019, Schirmer celebrated the pianist and composer with the recording Madame Schumann and in over 100 concerts, in which she revived not only Clara Schumann's compositions but also numerous historical concert programs at the original venues. She received the Schumann Prize from the city of Zwickau for this.
She performs with percussionist Matthias Daneck as the duo PiaCussion; their arrangement of "Pictures at an Exhibition" for piano and percussion received high praise from the specialist press. In the project VolkseigenTon, the duo collaborates with director, actor, and author Axel Ranisch, exploring the history of the GDR in words and music.
In 2023, Ragna Schirmer was Artiste étoile at the Mozart Festival Würzburg.
In 2023, Ragna Schirmer was Artiste étoile at the Mozart Festival Würzburg.
At the beginning of her career, the award-winning artist made a sensational CD debut with her recording of Bach's Goldberg Variations. For her complete recording of George Frideric Handel's piano suites, she was honored with the ECHO Klassik Award and the Handel Prize of the City of Halle. Ragna Schirmer's discography currently includes 19 CDs, two DVDs, and two vinyl recordings. She can be heard not only on the modern concert grand piano, but also devotes herself to her passion for historical keyboard instruments.
Ragna Schirmer has also been active in cultural politics for many years. She is involved in various projects to promote the perception of culture in the media and strives to make a statement with creative ideas.
