The Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra has named German conductor Jun Märkl as its new Music Director, effective from the 2021 Season. One of the most respected interpreters of Germanic and French symphonic repertoire in the world today, Märkl brings an extraordinary international pedigree to Kuala Lumpur.
The Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra has a history of appointing music directors of the highest international calibre. From founding Music Director Kees Bakels, who built the orchestra from nothing beginning in 1998, through Matthias Bamert, Claus Peter Flor and Fabio Mechetti — the MPO has consistently looked to conductors with serious European credentials. With the announcement of Jun Märkl as its next Music Director, effective with the 2021 Season, the orchestra continues that tradition.
Märkl, born in Munich in 1959 to a Japanese pianist mother and a German violinist father, is one of the most broadly accomplished conductors of his generation. He is a highly respected interpreter of the core Germanic repertoire — symphonic and operatic — and has built a parallel reputation for his refined, idiomatic explorations of the French Impressionists, most notably through a celebrated Debussy series with the Orchestre National de Lyon. He has recorded more than 60 albums and maintained long relationships with the world's most prestigious stages: the Vienna State Opera, Bavarian State Opera Munich, Semperoper Dresden, and the Metropolitan Opera in New York.
It is with great joy and excitement that I am accepting the honour to lead the MPO through the next years to come. I am delighted to begin the journey of a closer relationship with an organisation I feel a close affinity to already.
— Jun Märkl, on his MPO appointmentMärkl studied piano and violin in Munich before pursuing conducting at the Musikhochschule Hannover and the University of Michigan. His conducting mentors include some of the most legendary figures of the 20th century: he studied under Sergiu Celibidache, and won a stipend to Tanglewood where he worked alongside Leonard Bernstein and Seiji Ozawa. In 1986, he won the conducting competition of the Deutscher Musikrat.
11 February 1959, Munich, Germany
Musikhochschule Hannover; Univ. of Michigan; Tanglewood (Bernstein, Ozawa); pupil of Celibidache
Germanic symphonic & operatic repertoire; French Impressionists (Debussy, Ravel, Messiaen)
60+ albums; acclaimed Debussy series with ONL; complete Schumann symphonies with NHK
Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, France (2012)
Music Director from Season 2021; first guest-conducted the MPO in 2018
Märkl's relationship with the MPO predates his appointment: he first guest-conducted the orchestra in 2018 and returned twice in 2019 and again in March 2020. The familiarity was mutual and well-established before the announcement was made. MPO CEO Sareen Risham described the appointment as the beginning of "fruitful and rewarding years," highlighting Märkl's ability to build on the legacy of founding Music Director Kees Bakels, the orchestra's Conductor Laureate.
For Malaysian audiences, the appointment signals ambition. Märkl brings not just a world-class baton but an extraordinarily deep network: the orchestras, opera houses and recording labels he has worked with represent the apex of the classical music world. His commitment to music education — he has worked extensively with young musicians at the Pacific Music Festival in Sapporo and the Aspen Music Festival — also aligns with the MPO's mandate through the Malaysian Philharmonic Youth Orchestra.
The 2021 Season marks the beginning of a new chapter at Dewan Filharmonik Petronas. Tickets and programme information are available at mpo.com.my.