Alexander Briger

Born in Australia, Alexander Briger studied in Sydney and Munich and won first prize at the International Competition for Conductors in the Czech Republic in 1993. He later worked closely with Sir Charles Mackerras and Pierre Boulez and made his debut with Opera Australia in 1998 conducting Jenufa. Operatic work has since included 'Madama Butterfly', 'Cosi fan tutte','Cunning Little Vixen' and 'Le Nozze di Figaro' (Opera Australia), 'The Rape of Lucretia' (Royal Opera House, Covent Garden), 'Die Zauberfloete' (Glyndebourne Festival), 'Rigoletto' and 'Makropulos Case' (English National Opera), 'Cunning Little Vixen' (Aix-en-Provence), 'Bartered Bride' (Royal Swedish Opera), 'La Boheme' (State Opera of South Australia), Bartok ballets (Opera du Rhin) as well as the premiere of Simon Holt's 'Who put Bella in the Wych’elm' for the Aldeburgh Festival.

He has performed regularly with the Philharmonia, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, opening their 2003 'Friday Series' in London and touring with them to China in 2003/4; and the Birmingham Contemporary Music Group, with whom he made his BBC Proms and Berlin Festival debuts.

He has also worked with the Orchestre de Paris for the opening of the 2004 'Musica Festival', Scottish Chamber Orchestra, with whom he conducted the final concert of the 2004 Edinburgh Festival, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Berliner Sinfonie-Orchester, BBC Symphony Orchestra, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Swedish Radio Orchestra, Orchestre National du Capitol de Toulouse, Frankfurt Radio Orchestra, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie, Academy of St.Martin in the Fields, Salzburg Mozarteum, Salzburg Camerata, Ensemble InterContemporain, London Sinfonietta, collaborating with Peter Sellars and pianist Helene Grimaud for the premiere of Arvo Part's 'Lament Tate', Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and Japanese Virtuoso Symphony.

2007/8 and beyond includes debuts with Canadian Opera (new production of 'From the House of the Dead'), Rotterdam Philharmonic, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, WASO, Royal Danish Opera ('Tales of Hoffmann'), Luxemburg Opera ('Carmen') as well as returns to the Berliner Sinfonie-Orchester and Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.