Andreas Ottensamer

Clarinet

“Ottensamer, while an outstanding clarinet soloist on his own, is a true chamber music partner … and has a gorgeous tone, warm and woody, with nary a harsh note”

Leslie Wright, 2019

Biography

With Andreas, we welcome nobility. Just look at this: His father and brother are principal clarinetists in the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, his mother is a professor and teaches at the Vienna Conservatory, and at the age of 22, he became the principal clarinetist at the Berlin Philharmonic.

With his Austrian-Hungarian musical background, it was perhaps predetermined that Andreas would become a musician, and he started with both piano and cello before trying the clarinet for the first time at the age of 11. He has said that making a living from music was always a dream, but not at any cost. Perhaps it is the feeling of all of life’s possibilities that made it take him only eleven years to become a soloist clarinetist in Berlin.

He continues the classic warm and round clarinet tone known from Central Europe, and his solo career and recordings are praised by audiences and critics alike. This includes his pursuit of a conducting career. Fortunately for us, he is an outspoken advocate for chamber music, and we will have the pleasure of experiencing Andreas’ entire repertoire this summer.