Peter FERANEC, conductor

Peter Feranec was born in 1964 in Bratislava - former Czechoslovakia. In 1985 after graduating from the Bratislava Academy of Music, he attended the Bartok International Festival and Seminar (1985-1987) with Professor P. Eotvos and conducted contemporary music. The same year, he began five years studies, a scholarship from the Russian Ministry of Culture, at the State Conservatory in St.Petersburg (former Leningrad) under M. Jansons (graduated in 1990). After completing his postgraduate studies in Vienna in 1991 by Prof. K. Oesterreicher, Peter was selected as a conductor of the Slovak National Opera House in Bratislava. He was 25 and finalist of International Competition in Tokyo (1991) and Budapest (1992) and gold medalist of the 1992 Forum of Young Artists competition in Vienna. Since 1993 Peter conducted several opera productions at the Vienna Chamber Opera as a principal conductor, led Mozart operas Le Nozze di Figaro and Don Giovanni at the Vienna Festival Mozart in Schonbrunn in 1992 and 1993. Peter made his debut as conductor at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow in February 1995, leading an original-language production of Le Nozze di Figaro (with Prof. J. Herz as stage-director). This epoch-making production for the Bolshoi, which is in the midst of revolutionary changes reflecting the new democratic Russia, featured foreign guest artist and attracted widespread attention from the international music community. Maestro’s role in this production led to his appointment as Lazarev’s successor, making him the first foreign-born principal conductor (and also the youngest one ). At the Bolshoi he led various new productions: Lucia di Lammermoor, La Bohéme, La Traviata (season 1995/96), The Queen of Spades, Aida (1996/97), Love for three Oranges (1997/98) with Sir Peter Ustinov as stage-director and other 18 operatic tittles from the Bolshoi repertoire.

Mr. Feranec was guest conductor of St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, London Philharmonic, Orchestra du Capitol Toulouse, Zürich Opera House, Tonkuenstlerorchester Vienna, Pittsburg Symphony Orchestra, Slovak Phil., Czech Philharmonics, Moscow Symphony Orchestra, Nuernberger Symphoniker, Janacek Philharmonic Orchestra Ostrava, Lisbon Symphony Orchestra, Gulbenkian Orchestra Lisbon, Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, Orquestra de Sao Paulo, SWDR Orchestra, Guerzenich Orchestra in Cologne.

From the season 2001-2002 was appointed as chief conductor at the Slovak National Theatre in Bratislava, principal guest conductor of Czech National Theatre Prague.

For 2006-2007 season Peter appeared with Berlin Symphony Orchestra, conducted new openings at Zürich Opera House (Don Quixote), Stockholm (La Traviata), at Ljubljana Opera House (Don Quixote) as well as at State Opera House Prague (Idomeneo).

At 2007-2008 season he conducted new concerts with Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Czech Radio, Slovak Philharmony, Danish Royal Opera House in Copenhagen, Estonian National Philharmonia in Tallin, Moscow Radio Orchestra, Thessaloniki Symphony Orchestra, Czech National Opera House in Prague, Slovenian National Opera Ljubljana and made his debut at the Bavarian State Opera House.

Since June 2009 Peter Feranec has been Music Director and Principal Conductor of the Mikhailovsky Theatre. He became music director of the productions of Swan Lake, Rusalka, and La Juive.