Son of a Russian actor, he was born in Siegen, Germany, on 15/4/1947. He was raised in Munich. He studied music, history of music and art history at the University of Munich (Hochschule für Musik und Theater München). At first, he was hired in 1966 by the Bavarian Opera in Munich as a stage manager and assistant director under Rudolf Hartmann and Günther Rennert; he held these positions until 1969. His collarobations include major opera houses, such as the Rhine German Opera House in Dortmund-Duisburg (1971-79) and the Vienna State Opera House. He is a close associate of Jean-Pierre Ponnelle. Since 1979, he has been directing frequently for the Zürich Opera, where he has also served as artistic director. He has worked with major opera houses world-wide, including those of Vienna, Buenos Aires, Dresden, Madrid, Monte Carlo, Genoa, Houston, Chicago, Tokyo and Tel Aviv, where he has directed, among others, the following operas Die Entführung aus dem Serail, Don Giovanni, L’Italiana in Algeri, La Cenerentola, La sonnambula, Andrea Chénier, Il matrimonio segreto), Rigoletto, Eugene Onegin, Samson et Dalila. In Greece, he has directed the operas Così fan tutte, Cavalleria rusticana, Carmen (at the Athens Concert Hall (Megaron)), and the opera Cinderella at the GNO (1976-77). He has taught at the Duisburg Academy of Music. // Last update of the biography: December 2015 - The list of productions below is continually updated.