Diemut Poppen / viola

Diemut Poppen is one of the finest viola players of her generation. Born in a musical family and playing the violin from the age of 7 and the viola from the age of 16, Diemut Poppen studied in Germany, USA and Paris with some of the greatest viola players of her time, including Yuri Bashmet, Kim Kashkashian, Bruno Giuranna and Peter Schidlof. Diemut Poppen has been awarded several scholarships and prizes, among them the Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes and the renowned European Music Prize.

 As a soloist, Diemut Poppen has performed in major music centers all over the world including the Carnegie Hall in New York, Barbican in London, Philharmonie in Berlin and Mozarteum in Salzburg and has worked with musicians like Heinz Holliger, Frans Bruggen, Claudio Abbado, Leonidas Kavakos and Viktor Tretyakov. As a chamber musician she has been invited by well known musicians to their own chamber music festivals, including A.Schiff (Salzburg, Mondsee), G.Kremer (Lockenhaus), B.Pergamenschikov (Koln), T.Mork (Stavanger), L.Kavakos (Athens), I.v.Keulen (Delfft) and N.Gutman (Kreuth). Diemut Poppen was for 15 years the principal viola and a founding member of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe. Presently, she is professor of viola and chamber music in Detmold, Germany and at the renowned Escuela di Reina Sofia in Madrid, giving, at the same time several international master-classes. She is artistic director of the Thuringische Sommerakademie for Chamber Music and of the Detmolder Sommerakademie. She has also acted as artistic director of the chamber music seria Osnabrucker Kammermusiktage in Osnabruck, Germany, for several years.

Diemut Poppen’s repertory is very wide, ranging from the classical viola concertos to all combinations of chamber and modern music. Several composers have written new pieces for her, including solo works, as well as concertos, sonatas and chamber music. She has performed the viola concertos of Mikhail Pletnev, Vassily Lobanov and the work Styxx by G.Kancheli for viola, symphony orchestra and choir. Diemut Poppen has recorded for Deutsche Grammophon, Cappricio, Live classics, EMI, Tudor, Ediphone, Ondine, among others.

Cyprus is Diemut’s favourite country and she visits the island quite regularly.