“Maurice Steger’s virtuosity and sense of style are admirable.”
It is not surprising that Maurice Steger has been called “Paganini,” “wizard,” and “the world’s leading recorder player.” To live up to such descriptions requires not only astonishing technique, but charisma, intellect, and a special sensitivity for the music — all qualities Steger brings to concert halls around the world as soloist, conductor, or both at once.
He performs regularly with leading period instrument ensembles including the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, La Cetra Baroque Orchestra Basel, Venice Baroque Orchestra, The English Concert, Il Pomo d’Oro, and I Barocchisti, as well as modern orchestras such as the Zurich Chamber Orchestra, the Frankfurt Radio Symphony, and the Munich Chamber Orchestra. What strikes audiences and colleagues alike is how consistently these ensembles sound transformed after working with him — sonically sensitive, historically informed, and vividly expressive.
Chamber music forms an important strand of his work, with collaborators including Rachel Podger, Avi Avital, Sol Gabetta, and the harpsichordist Jean Rondeau. His curiosity extends to unexpected combinations and experimental formations, and he has been a tireless excavator of forgotten repertoire: his recording Souvenirs drew on works discovered in the private library of Count Harrach in Naples, while Baroque Twitter with the Basel Chamber Orchestra and singer Nuria Rial took its inspiration from birdsong. His recording Mr. Handel’s Dinner with La Cetra Barockorchester Basel explores Handel’s London opera performances and their intermissions.
Steger’s international reach extends well beyond Europe: tours through North and South America, Asia, and Australia have brought collaborations with the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra and the Malaysia Philharmonic Orchestra, among others, and he was the first Western recorder player to perform with the Traditional Taipei Chinese Orchestra. Musical education is equally central to his life: he has directed the Gstaad Baroque Academy at the Menuhin Festival since 2013, and created the children’s character Tino Flautino to introduce young audiences to classical music — a figure who has become something of a cultural institution in his native Switzerland.
Maurice Steger has received many awards for his work, including the Karajan Prize and the ECHO Klassik.
