The Munich-born soprano Susanne Bernhard graduated from the University of Music and Performing Arts in her hometown, where she was involved in numerous productions of the Bavarian Theater Academy. She was supported by August Everding as a young up-and-coming talent and made her debut in 1997 as Susanna in Mozart's "Le nozze di Figaro" at the Prinzregententheater in Munich. Immediately after completing her studies, she became a member of the ensemble at Kiel Opera House. She has appeared as a guest at several opera houses, including the Frankfurt Opera and the Dresden Semperoper. In 2019, she made her debut with the role of Leonore in Beethoven's "Fidelio" at the Voralberger Landestheater in Bregenz under the direction of Karsten Januschke.
As part of her diverse engagements as a concert singer, she has already worked with renowned conductors such as Enoch zu Guttenberg, Thomas Søndergård, Semyon Bychkov, Daniel Harding, Andrew Manze, Markus Poschner, Neeme Järvi, Paavo Järvi, Kristjan Järvi, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Ralf Otto, Yutaka Sado, Eiji Oue, Helmuth Rilling, Thierry Fischer, Marin Alsop, Marcus Bosch and Michael Sanderling.
Susanne Bernhard is a regular guest of renowned orchestras and festivals with works by Richard Strauss – in particular his “Four Last Songs” –, Verdi's Messa da Requiem, Beethoven's Missa solemnis and his 9th Symphony as well as works by Gustav Mahler and Antonín Dvořák. She has repeatedly worked with the NDR Radio Philharmonic, the WDR Symphony Orchestra, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Munich Radio Orchestra, the São Paulo State Symphony Orchestra and the Royal Liverpool Orchestra.
In March 2022, Susanne Bernhard made her debut with Verdi's Messa da Requiem in concerts with the Berlin Philharmonic under the direction of Daniel Barenboim. In 2023, she appeared in concerts with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and Andrew Manze and in several concerts under the direction of Markus Poschner, including Beethoven's Missa solemnis at the Musikverein Vienna. Furthermore, she sang Schönberg's “Gurre-Lieder” with the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Petr Popelka.
Numerous radio and CD recordings document her artistic work.