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Leonhard

Kreutzmann

Conductor

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Jeongmin Kim

+49 30 5213702 22
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Luise von Stülpnagel

+49 163 366 07 10
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Leonhard Kreutzmann

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Leonhard Kreutzmann is the winner of the Menuhin Conducting Prize of the Menuhin Festival Gstaad 2026. The 23-year-old German conductor first came to international attention in 2025 as a finalist of the prestigious Donatella Flick LSO Conducting Competition. He has an affinity for the classical and early romantic repertoire, bringing a detailed and precise musical vision grounded in a thorough knowledge of the score and his own experiences as an instrumentalist and singer. In autumn 2024 he was appointed Principal Conductor of the KHG-Orchester Freiburg, which performs regularly at the Konzerthaus Freiburg and in the region.

In the 2026/27 season he makes his debuts with the Philharmonia Orchestra London, the Bochumer Symphoniker and the Sinfonieorchester Wuppertal, and continues his collaboration with the Zentralschweizer Jugendsinfonieorchester. As part of the Menuhin Conducting Prize he conducts the Dresdner Philharmonie at the Frauenkirche Dresden in summer 2027.

Highlights of recent years include working as assistant to Dirk Kaftan at the Beethoven Orchester Bonn, as well as conducting a performance of Ketan Bhatti's opera 'Die Odyssee' at Theater Bonn. Further engagements included the Nürnberger Symphoniker, the NDR Radiophilharmonie, the Berner Symphonieorchester, the Slovak Philharmonic, the Göttinger Symphonieorchester, and at the Murten Classics Festival. During his studies he already led renowned ensembles such as the Kammerorchester Basel and the Luzerner Sinfonieorchester.

Born into a family of musicians, Kreutzmann began cello lessons at the age of four, followed by studies in piano, trumpet and voice. A multiple prize-winner at the 'Jugend musiziert' competition, he gained extensive solo and orchestral experience from an early age. Since September 2023 he has studied orchestral conducting at the Zurich University of the Arts with Professor Christoph-Mathias Mueller and Professor Johannes Schlaefli, having previously trained in Frankfurt with Professor Vassilis Christopoulos. Alongside conducting he continues his cello studies with Professor Orfeo Mandozzi in Zurich. Masterclasses with Michael Sanderling, Jorma Panula, Ole-Kristian Ruud and Cornelius Meister, as well as artistic input from Cristian Măcelaru, round off his training. Since 2025 he has held a scholarship from 'Forum Dirigieren', a programme for emerging conductors run by the German Music Council (Deutscher Musikrat); in 2026 he was admitted to the Talent Studio programme of the Althafen Foundation.

SEASON 2026 / 27