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The Austrian organist and church musician, Matthias Maierhofer, received his primary music education from Karl Schmelzer-Ziringer. Later on, he studied organ and church music at the universities of Graz (Austria), Leipzig (Germany), Freiburg (Germany) and at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis (Switzerland). His teachers include Arvid Gast, Andrea Marcon, Kurt Neuhauser and Martin Schmeding. He completed his studies with a soloist's diploma and graduated with honors from the University of Music, Freiburg. In 2007, he won the international organ competition Pachelbel-Wettbewerb in Nuremberg, Germany. He received awards at the international Franz Schmidt-Orgelwettbewerb in Kitzbühel, Austria, in 2008, the international Bachwettbewerb in Arnstadt, Germany, in 2007, the international Orgelconcours in Nijmegen, Netherlands, in 2006, and the international organ competition M. K. Ciurlionis in Vilnius, Lithuania, in 2003.
Matthias Maierhofer's successful concert career has taken him to important music festivals such as the Brucknertage at the St. Florian Monastery in Linz, Austria, Internationale Orgelwoche Nürnberg in Nuremberg, Germany, Mendelssohnfesttage in Leipzig, Germany, Lithuanian Orgelfest, Bachwoche Ansbach, Birmingham Symphony Hall in Great Britain, Izumi Hall in Izumi, Osaka, Japan, Musikfest in Stuttgart, Germany, and Domkonzerte in Riga, Latvia.
As a soloist as well as an accompanying continuo organist, Matthias Maierhofer has appeared on stage with various ensembles including the Dresdner Kreuzchor, Leipziger Universitätschor, Kantorei Graz and the Dresden Staatskapelle. He has performed for CD productions and publications of Edition Helbling, and recordings of his concerts can be found in several broadcasting corporations and under the label Ambitus.
Between 2005 and 2009 Matthias Maierhofer worked as church musician for the Roman Catholic parish St Albertus Magnus at Freiburg, Germany. During this period he also taught at the Academy for Outstanding Students (Akademie zur Begabtenförderung) as an assistant lecturer of Martin Schmeding at the University of Music, Freiburg. In September 2009 he was appointed to a full-time position as artistic colleague at the University of Music and Theatre "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" at Leipzig, Germany. There, he taught artistic and liturgical organ and improvisation. In 2013, he was appointed as successor of Professor Dr. Gerre Hancock to the chair of organ and church music at the University of Texas at Austin. He was appointed Dean's Fellow in 2015 for outstanding pedagogical achievements and received the Ducloux Fellowship of the College of Fine Arts. In 2016 he moved back to Freiburg, Germany, where he accepted the chair of organ music at the University of Music, Freiburg. He was also appointed cathedral organist at the Freiburg Minster. |
