AuditivVokal Dresden was founded in 2007 by the conductor Olaf Katzer and quickly became one of the most prominent vocal ensembles for contemporary music. The interdisciplinary artistic work focuses on the human condition, the question of the meaning of humanity, empathy, responsibility and dignity in the context of new technological, social and ecological developments.
Over 150 world premieres, exceptional original productions, international guest performances at numerous festivals, as well as CD, radio and video recordings document the artistic diversity and stylistic singularity of the ensemble. The insights gained from working with the most renowned composers of our time also flow into the interpretations of early and ancient music, in which the ensemble fascinates with its own approach.
The 36 singers of AuditivVokal Dresden perform in a wide variety of formats: from small-scale a cappella concerts to performances and scenic action art, to large-scale classical concerts with orchestra, they can be experienced in ever-surprising constellations. AuditivVokal Dresden regularly performs at numerous festivals in Germany and abroad and has been invited to perform at major concert halls in German and international music centers. The ensemble has so far made guest appearances in almost all European countries, as well as in the USA, Brazil and Chile.
Regular CD and radio productions with Deutschlandfunk Kultur, Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk, Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg, Bayerischer Rundfunk and Radio Suisse Romande complement the artistic work, as do multimedia productions with the film production companies Avanga and Knitterfisch.
Instrumental partners of the ensemble are orchestras such as the Dresden Symphony Orchestra, the ensemble Art d'Echo, El Perro Andaluz Dresden, the duo Reflexion K, the ensemble Moto Perpetuo New York, the ensemble Iberoamericano or the ensemble Interface Frankfurt/Main. AuditivVokal Dresden works in an interdisciplinary way with directors Maxim Didenko, Claudia Bauer and Holk Freytag, the writer Marcel Beyer, the choreographer Katja Erfurth, the sociologist Prof. Dr. Dirk Baecker and the psychologist Prof. Dr. Maja Dshemuchadse, among others.
As a result of the intensive aesthetic examination of current compositional perspectives on the human voice and through numerous commissions to young, renowned composers, the New Dresden Vocal School (Neue Dresdner Vokalschule) has emerged as a new aesthetic direction. This artistic work has been documented since 2017 as part of a cooperative documentation center at the Saxon State and University Library Dresden (Sächsische Landesbibliothek – Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Dresden, SLUB). The New Dresden Vocal School sees itself in close collaboration with composers as a living instrument for the performance of existing, complex and advanced works as well as newly created compositions.
Olaf Katzer and AuditivVokal Dresden are committed to social and cultural policy by promoting contemporary vocal music. For years, there has been a close and intensive collaboration with the Dresden University of Music. Numerous projects for young and old are on their agenda, as are workshops and masterclasses for composition and vocal students at universities such as the Dresden University of Music, the Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts, the Conservatório das Música in Belo Horizonte and the Manhattan School of Music in New York.
The vision of AuditivVokal Dresden is to use its artistic program to shed light on the big questions and challenges of our time. The ensemble aims to strengthen the intrinsic value of art, but also the fragile values of democracy and empathy.