Arts Global

While he was still following his studies of philosophy at the universities of Geneva and Zurich (Switzerland) Tobias Richter had his first professional engagement in 1972 as stage manager and assistant producer at the Grand Théâtre de Genève.

Two years later he then became personal assistant to the “Resident Producer of the Royal Opera House Covent Garden”, in London, German stage director Goetz Friedrich.

In 1977 he joined the newly appointed General Manager of the Bavarian State Opera, August Everding, in Munich, where he worked with French director and scenographer Jean-Pierre Ponnelle.

In 1980 Tobias Richter staged his first own production at the Bavarian State Opera and became a few months later “Oberspielleiter” (“First Resident Producer”) at the State Theatre of Kassel, Germany. In 1981 he started his international career as opera producer in Lyon and Paris (France) with the French Premiere of Die Schweigsame Frau (Richard Strauss). He then had been invited to many major opera companies and festivals, mainly in France and Italy. In 1987 he directed the opening production of Der Rosenkavalier (R.Strauss) at the prestigious festival in Aix-en-Provence,France.

In 1982 he became for the first time General Director (State Theatre Kassel, Germany). From 1985 to 1992 he was then General Manager and Director at the Opera in Bremen, Germany, where he directed regularly his own productions, collaborating with various prestigious painters as stage designers.

Since 1996 Tobias Richter is General Manager at the Deutschen Oper am Rhein, in Düsseldorf and Duisburg, Germany, where he directed himself an important number of new productions, while he is still continuing his international career.

He also worked for Television when he made a music documentary about his father, famous conductor, organ and harpsichord player, Karl Richter, which just had been released on DVD by “Deutsche Grammophon / Universalclassics”.

Tobias Richter had been decorated as “Chevalier des Arts et des letters” by the French Minister of Culture and he is “Professor” at the Robert-Schumann-Hochschule in Düsseldorf, Germany.

In 2003 he became Vice-president of the “Deutschsprachige Opernkonferenz” which is the main organisation of the biggest Opera companies in Europe, practising the German repertory system, and he is member of the board of the international Opera Association OperaEuropa.

Since November 2004 Tobias Richter is also General Director of the Music festival SEPTEMBRE MUSICAL, in Montreux-Vevey, Switzerland.