Kulturwelten Summer Academy 2026
Villa Liebenstein Bregenz
14 - 19 July
Dominika Falger, Violin
Born in Krakow into a musical family, Dominika Falger discovered the violin at the age of four, receiving her first formative instruction from her father. By the age of twelve, she had already embarked on a solo career that would take her across almost all European countries, as well as to America and the Far East. Her extensive musical education bridges the rigorous Polish violin school with the refined Viennese tradition. She studied concert violin at the Academy of Music in Poznan under Professors Jadwiga Kaliszewska and Marcin Baranowski, and continued her mastery in Austria at the Universities of Music in Vienna and Graz, guided by Edward Zienkowski, Yair Kless, and Jan Pospichal. Her artistic profile was further deepened through studies in historical performance practice with Ingomar Rainer and Hiro Kurosaki, as well as masterclasses with renowned virtuosos such as Herman Krebbers, Shmuel Ashkenasi, and Norbert Brainin. She graduated in both Concert Violin and Instrumental Pedagogy with the title “Magistra artium”. Dominika Falger’s virtuosity has been recognized with prizes at numerous prestigious international competitions. Her accolades include awards at the Zdzisław Jahnke Competition (Poznan), the Rodolfo Lipizer Competition (Gorizia), the Pablo Sarasate Competition (Pamplona), the Johannes Brahms Competition (Pörtschach), the Karol Lipiński and Henryk Wieniawski Competition (Lublin), the Karol Szymanowski Competition (Łódź), and the Tadeusz Wroński Solo Violin Competition (Warsaw). As a soloist, she has collaborated with a multitude of distinguished orchestras, including the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, the Taegu City Symphony Orchestra, the Baltic Philharmonic Orchestra Gdansk, the Poznan Philharmonic, the Slovak Chamber Orchestra, the Chamber Orchestra “Wratislavia”, and the Lviv Virtuosi. Her artistic work is documented through active radio, television, and CD recordings, with a repertoire spanning from the Baroque era to the most significant works of Classical, Romantic, and Contemporary music. Since 1999, Dominika Falger has been a central figure in Vienna’s orchestral landscape as Principal Second Violin of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra. Since 2017, she has also dedicated herself to chamber music as a member of the Glière String Quartet. Parallel to her performance career, she is a passionate pedagogue. She began her teaching path from 1997 to 2005 as an assistant in the class of Prof. Yair Kless at the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz. Today, she passes on her expertise as a Professor at the Music and Arts Private University of the City of Vienna (MUK) (since 2011), as well as teaching at the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz and the Music Schools of the City of Vienna. Her commitment to the next generation extends to serving as a lecturer at various masterclasses and as a juror at international violin competitions.
Wladislaw Winokurow, Violin
Born in Kiev into a distinguished musical dynasty, Wladislaw Winokurow was immersed in the world of sound from his earliest years. His artistic journey began at age five under the tutelage of his father, rapidly leading to the renowned Special Music School for Gifted Children. There, embedded in the rigorous tradition of the Kiev violin school, he received intensive formative training from Alexander Panov, Avanes Buludian, and Isaak Kushnir. By the age of ten, Winokurow had already demonstrated his precocious talent through solo debuts with the Kiev Chamber Orchestra—a prelude to his relocation to Austria in 1992, a move that would decisively shape his artistic identity. In Vienna, the capital of classical music, Winokurow successfully merged the technical virtuosity of his Eastern roots with the stylistic elegance of the Viennese tradition. He honed his craft at the Vienna Music High School and the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna, guided by renowned mentors such as Eugenia Polatschek, Gernot Winischhofer, and the legendary Boris Kuschnir. His musical personality was further sculpted through masterclasses with violin titans including Abraham Stern, Zakhar Bron, and Viktor Tretyakov, gaining profound insights into the great violin repertoire. As the founder and primarius of the Glière String Quartet, Winokurow has established a significant international presence in the chamber music world. Following a triumphant 1st prize at the 8th International Beethoven Competition in 2012, the ensemble has graced prestigious stages worldwide, from the Goldene Saal of the Vienna Musikverein to celebrated festivals including the Nikodemowicz Festival, the “Opus Magnum” Festival, and the Harmonie Starego Miasta in Poland. While the quartet’s repertoire spans from early Viennese Classicism to contemporary avant-garde, Winokurow has dedicated a core part of his artistic mission to the rediscovery and interpretation of Slavic repertoire. He is particularly celebrated for his advocacy of Ukrainian and Soviet composers such as Borodin, Myaskovsky, Shostakovich, and the ensemble’s namesake, Reinhold Glière. Since 2020, a prolific collaboration with the label DUX has produced highly acclaimed recording series, including the string quartets of R. Glière alongside masterpieces by Bruckner, Mendelssohn, and Ravel, receiving praise for their depth of expression and tonal refinement. Beyond the concert stage, Wladislaw Winokurow is a distinguished pedagogue devoted to nurturing the next generation of violinists. Since 2018, Wladislaw Winokurow has held a teaching position at the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz (KUG). His pedagogical approach—focusing on the development of a distinct artistic personality—is evidenced by his students’ exceptional success, boasting over 60 victories at national and international competitions. A sought-after mentor, he regularly leads masterclasses across Europe, passing on his expertise at the Kulturwelten Summer Academy (Vienna), the European Music Institute Vienna, the Austrian Master Classes (Salzburg), and the Wieniawski Society in Lublin. Furthermore, he serves as a respected jury member at prominent competitions such as the Prima la Musica federal competition in Austria, the Vasa Prihoda, and the Kocian Violin Competitions in the Czech Republic.
Natalia Binkowska, Viola
Natalia Binkowska is a violist born in Warsaw and has been performing as a soloist and chamber musician on national and international stages for many years. In 2009, she completed her instrumental violin and viola studies in Poland with distinction and transferred to the Vienna University of Music. In November 2015, she completed her concert studies with Prof. Wolfgang Klos – also with distinction. Binkowska was a scholarship holder of the Ministry of Culture and Arts in Poland and the Federal Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture in Austria. The musician, who has already won several awards at international competitions, received further artistic impulses under the direction of members of the Vienna Philharmonic, including at the Orchestra Academy in Ossiach and the Attersee Institute Attergau, in the Vienna Jeunesse Orchestra and in professional orchestras such as the Bruckner Orchestra Linz, the RSO, the Vienna Symphony Orchestra and the Vienna Volksoper. From 2017 to 2019, Binkowska was assistant principal viola in the Slovak National Philharmonic Orchestra in Bratislava. She has been a violist with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra since 2019. In the 2020-21 season, she took over the position of 2nd solo viola. 2019. Chamber music has always been a particularly important part of Binkowska’s musical life. She regularly performs with members of the Vienna Philharmonic and the Vienna Symphony Orchestra and is a co-founder of the Auner Quartet, in which she was active until the end of 2017. She has been a violist in the Umia Quartet since 2021. Binkowska has been teaching viola and chamber music for several years. Until summer 2020, she led her own class at the Prayner Conservatory in Vienna and can look back on many teaching successes; many of her former students study at Austria’s renowned music universities. Binkowska is an external juror for the practice audition at the Music and Arts Private University of the City of Vienna and viola teacher of the Vienna Jeunesse Orchestra. She has been teaching at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna since October 2021.
Christoph Stradner, Violoncello
Christoph Stradner was born in Vienna in 1970 and received his first instrumental lessons from Frieda Litschauer at the age of six. He then studied with Wolfgang Herzer at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna, graduating with distinction. A scholarship from the Alban Berg Foundation in Vienna enabled him to study in London with William Pleeth. Stradner, who was previously principal cellist of the Tonkünstler Orchestra of Lower Austria and at times principal cellist of the Camerata Salzburg, has been principal cellist of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra since 2004. He also teaches at the Vienna Conservatory Private University. Stradner has performed as a soloist with the Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg, the Vienna Chamber Orchestra and the Tonkünstlerorchester Niederösterreich. Performances at festivals such as the Carinthian Summer, the Bregenz Festival and the Vienna Music Summer as well as a busy chamber music career complete his profile. Stradner won first prize at the Austrian “Jugend Musiziert” competition in 1991 and first prize at the “Concurso Internacional de Violonchelo” in Murcia/Spain in 1993. Stradner plays a violoncello by Antonio Stradivari from the year 1680.
Ivan Kitanović, Double Bass
Ivan Kitanović was born in 1976 in Kruševac (now Serbia); his great love of music was evident from an early age: he taught himself to play the guitar and accordion before his great musical talent was discovered and he was accepted into the renowned music boarding school in Ćuprija. There, his outstanding aptitude for the double bass soon became apparent and he achieved great success on this instrument in a very short time: he won first prize in five national and international competitions, followed by numerous solo performances with orchestra, live broadcasts and portraits on TV and radio. Immediately after graduating from the Ćuprija music boarding school with the highest honours to date, he became solo bassist with the Belgrade Strings and at the same time studied at the Belgrade Academy of Music. From 2000, he continued his studies with Josef Niederhammer at the University of Music in Vienna, where he was soon able to build on his previous successes: for example, he was chosen as the musical representative of Europe for the highly acclaimed intermission film of the 2003 New Year’s Concert, which was broadcast worldwide, and was a member of several orchestras (including the stage orchestra of the Vienna State Opera). Since 2003 he has been 1st solo double bassist of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra. Ivan Kitanović is dedicated to expanding the double bass repertoire and also includes major works of cello literature in his concerts. This enables him to position the double bass as a musically fully-fledged, sonically impressive solo instrument. He pursues his love of chamber music with the trio “Impossibile”, which performs worldwide, and is also regularly invited by renowned ensembles (such as the Hugo Wolf Quartet, EOS Quartet, Ensemble “die reihe”).
Martin Edelmann, Chamber Music
Martin Edelmann, born in Bretten/Germany in 1969, received his first violin lessons at the age of five After studying with Prof. Maria Grevesmühl at the Hochschule für Musik und Kunst in Bremen, Martin Edelmann went to Vienna to study with Prof. Gerhart Hetzel and later with Prof. Edward Zienkowski. In 1993, he switched to the viola and joined the class of Prof Siegfried Führlinger. In addition to his studies, he received artistic impulses in masterclasses with Felix Andriewsky, Sachar Bron, Max Rostal, Igor Ozim and later with Kim Kashkashian and Barbara Westphal. Martin Edelmann already played as a substitute at the Vienna State Opera and with the Vienna Philharmonic during his studies. In 1994, he co-founded the “Hugo Wolf Quartet”, in which he played as a violist for five years. With this ensemble he was honoured several times, for example with the first prize at the International Competition for String Quartets in Cremona, the first prize at the national competition “Gradus ad Parnassum” and the prize for the best string quartet at the 45th International G. B. Viotti International Competition for Chamber Music in Vercelli. As a chamber musician, he has performed in major concert halls such as the Herkulessaal in Munich, the Tonhalle Zurich, the Vienna Musikverein and Vienna Konzerthaus, the Mozarteum Salzburg, the “Y” in New York as well as at renowned festivals in Salzburg, the Carinthian Summer, the Schubertiade Feldkirch and the Klangbogen Vienna. Concert tours have taken him throughout Europe and North America. Edelmann was a member of the viola section of the Vienna RSO from 2007 to 2019 and has been with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra since September 2019. He has been a member of the Glière String Quartet from 2019 to 2025.
Nikolaj Leo Strauss, Piano
Nikolaj Leo Strauss was born in Friedrichshafen on Lake Constance and grew up in a family with a rich musical tradition. He devoted himself to Chopin’s music from an early age and spent his first years of study in Poland, where he studied with Jerzy Sulikowski. He gave his first piano recital at 13 and undertook his first concert tour in Poland at 15. He studied at the Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana and the Ferenc Liszt Academy in Budapest in Kornel Zempleny’s class. His greatest artistic influence, however, was his teacher and mentor Adam Harasiewicz in Salzburg and Warsaw, who shaped him artistically for three decades. He attended masterclasses with Kevin Kenner in Krynica-PL and with Piotr Paleczny and Karl-Heinz Kämmerling as part of the Holland Music Sessions. He was also a pupil of Eduard Mamajev for a year, where he was introduced to the Russian piano school. Nikolaj Leo Strauss’ concert programs are characterized by the Romantic period around Chopin, while also regularly turning to the Classical period, particularly Haydn, Mozart, and Schubert. He pays special attention to lesser-known and less frequently performed works, such as Chopin’s 1st Piano Sonata and Tchaikovsky’s 2nd Piano Concerto. His piano recitals have taken him to many European countries, as well as South America and Israel. His pianistic style is based on listening, deliberate use of tempo rubato, and a way of playing that recalls earlier times. He has performed chamber music with violinists Dominika Falger and Mariarosaria d’Aprile and regularly gives concerts as a Lied accompanist. After his debut with Chopin’s Rondeau à la Krakowiak at 18, he began performing regularly as a soloist with orchestras, with Chopin’s piano concertos taking centre stage. In 1999, on the 150th anniversary of Chopin’s death, he was on UNESCO’s list of artists representing the Chopin Year. In addition to piano music, Strauss has been involved in conducting and choral directing since his early youth, receiving his most important influences from his teacher Georg Mais and mentor Boguslaw Dawidow. He has conducted choirs continuously since 2001 and worked as a cantor for liturgical and Byzantine chant at Orthodox cathedrals in Budapest and Buenos Aires. He speaks fluent English, Italian, Polish, German, and Russian and lives in Lugano, in the Italian-speaking part of Switzerland, where he currently teaches a large group of students.
Erwin Klambauer, Flute
Erwin Klambauer was born in Ottensheim, Upper Austria. He initially studied flute and piano at the Anton Bruckner University in Linz and then continued his flute studies at the Vienna University of Music with Wolfgang Schulz. Erwin Klambauer received important artistic impulses as solo flutist with the Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra, the Youth Orchestra of a United Europe and the Camerata Salzburg, among others. After an engagement in the stage orchestra of the Austrian Federal Theaters, he was principal flute of the ORF Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra from 1993 to 2013. Erwin Klambauer performs as a soloist with various orchestras and ensembles in Austria and abroad; his repertoire ranges from baroque to contemporary music. Numerous CD recordings as well as radio and television recordings document his solo activities. He also works regularly with the pianist Reinhold Puri-Jobi, the ensemble Kontrapunkte, the ensemble “die reihe” and the flute ensemble “Halil”. Erwin Klambauer taught a flute class at the Konservatorium Wien Privatuniversität from 2004 to 2008. Since 2008 he has been professor of flute at the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz/Institute Oberschützen. Erwin Klambauer has been principal flute of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra since 2014.
Reinhard Wieser, Clarinet
Reinhard Wieser studied with Prof. Alfred Prinz of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. He won the position of Principal Clarinet of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra at the age of nineteen. Along to his forty-year career in the orchestra, he holds a good reputation as a soloist and chamber musician. This features such renowned conductors as Adam Fischer, Claus Peter Flor, Fabio Luisi, Johannes Wildner, Miguel Á. Gómez Martínez, Oleg Caetani, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Bertrand de Billy, Yakov Kreizberg and Georges Prétre. He has played recitals in New York and Washington, 2026 again in Vienna and Plovdiv. Besides this, Reinhard Wieser plays chamber music with the Wiener Kammermusiker, the Johann Strauss Ensemble of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra and other renowned artists, such as Renaud Capucon and Philippe Jordan, the past chief conductor of the VSO. Various projects have included colleagues like Rainer Honeck, Thomas Christian, Maria Prinz, Jasminka Stancul and Christopher Hinterhuber. Additionally to many recordings with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra and the Johann Strauss Ensemble, he has recorded Theme and Variations for Clarinet and Strings by Jean Francaix for Camerata Tokyo. Recently added was also a CD with the Concertino for Violin and Clarinet by Vítězslava Kaprálová. Since 1996, Reinhard Wieser heads his studio in the Music and Arts University of the City of Vienna (MUK). His former students play in major orchestras in Europe and are teaching in many countries. He has hosted numerous master classes in Austria (Vienna, Bregenz), Germany, France (Musicalta Rouffach), Spain (Valencia, Santiago de Compostela), Malta, Venezuela, Japan and the USA (Bloomington Jacobs School of Music, Ohio State University, Michigan State University). In September he regularly hosts masterclasses at the prestigious Talent Summer Courses in Brescia.
Martin Rainer, Clarinet
Mag.art Martin Rainer BA was born in 1987 in the Tyrolean Außerfern (AUT). Since 2019, Senior Lecturer for bass clarinet at the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz. Studied at the Mozarteum Salzburg / Innsbruck branch with PD Mag. Maximilian Bauer as well as at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna with Mag. Alexander Neubauer, Univ. Prof. Peter Schmidl and Prof. Johann Hindler. Concert activities with renowned orchestras, including the Vienna Symphony, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg, Tyrol Symphony Orchestra Innsbruck, Vienna Volksoper, Vienna State Opera Orchestra/ Vienna Philharmonic. Member of the woodwind quintet “Webern Wind Quintet”, the ensemble “ViennEssence”, as well as active chamber music activity in various formations. Compositional activity since his youth. Since 2016, studies in composition and music theory at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna with Prof. Martin Lichtfuss and Prof. Michael Jarrell. Martin Rainer can look back on several world premieres and performances of his works in well-known concert halls such as the Vienna Musikverein or the Vienna Konzerthaus.
Robert Gillinger, Bassoon
Robert Gillinger (formerly Buschek) studied with Milan Turkovic and Stepan Turnovsky in Vienna. From 1994 to 2001 he was a member of the Bruckner Orchestra Linz, since 2001 he has been a member of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra (deputy 1st, 2nd and 3rd bassoon as well as contrabassoon) and has a teaching position at the Vienna University of Music. Robert Gillinger has played in all Viennese opera and concert orchestras, as a guest in Klangforum Wien, in the ensemble “Die Reihe”, in Ensemble Modern (Frankfurt) and in the Ensemble Modern Orchestra, among others. He is first bassoonist of the Wiener Kammerphilharmonie, the Wiener Concert-Verein and the Vienna Classical Players, as well as a member of the ensembles Elliott Carter Quintet, Triple Tongue Vienna, Ensemble 1080 and Ensemble Reconsil. He also works with both historical and modern instruments (such as the contraforte). He has performed as a soloist with the Webern Symphony Orchestra, the Bruckner Orchestra Linz, the Wiener Concertverein, the Baroque Ensemble of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra and the Ensemble Reconsil. His intensive collaboration with composers has led to numerous compositions for/with bassoon and contraforte. In addition to numerous chamber music and solo pieces, he plans to perform and record bassoon and contraforte concertos.
Johanna Bilgeri, Bassoon
Matthias Kernstock, Trumpet
Matthias Kernstock was born in 1992 in St. Pölten. He received his first musical impulses at the age of five from his grandfather. After his training at the Wilhelmsburg Music School with Franz Griesler and private lessons with Franz Wallner, he moved at the age of 15 to study with Prof. Josef Pomberger at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna. From 2012, he studied with Johann Plank at the Music and Arts University of the City of Vienna (MUK). After two years of instruction, he continued his studies with Roman Rindberger, also at the MUK. During this time, he won the audition for the Karajan Academy of the Berlin Philharmonic and was also engaged for some time with the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra. In 2016, he completed his bachelor’s degree at the MUK, followed by a master’s degree with Peter Fliecher. In December 2017, Kernstock won the audition for the position of principal trumpet of the Vienna Symphony. In addition to his work as an orchestral musician, Kernstock regularly gives masterclasses, such as at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, the Conservatorio Superior de Musica in Zaragoza, the Lübeck Academy of Music, or the Schagerl Brass Academy. As a passionate chamber musician, he is also a member of the Wien Berlin Brass Quintet, which regularly tours Japan. Kernstock plays trumpets by the Schagerl company in Mank (Lower Austria) and, due to his interest in instrument making, is involved in the further development and quality control of the instruments.
Markus Obmann, Horn
Markus Obmann was born on 1981 in St. Veit an der Glan/Carinthia. He received his first horn lessons at the age of eight at the Treibach-Althofen music school. After taking part very successfully in the “Prima la musica” youth music competition several times, he studied in the horn class of Roland Berger and Thomas Jöbstl at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna from October 2000. In 2005, Markus Obmann became a member of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra as a horn player. He is also a regular guest with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and the Vienna State Opera. He also performs regularly with various chamber music formations and ensembles (Vienna Art Orchestra, Austrian Brass Connection, Wiener Concertverein, etc.) in Austria and abroad. Since 2006 he has been a permanent member of the Vienna Horns, a unique ensemble consisting of the leading horn players of Austrian orchestras. All members exclusively use the Viennese horn in F, which is jointly responsible for the unmistakable Viennese sound. After completing his concert diploma with distinction, Markus Obmann was appointed assistant to Thomas Jöbstl’s horn class at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna in March 2009.
Nikolaus Singhania, Trombone
Nikolaus Singhania was born in Weissenbach an der Triesting, Austria, in 1994. He began learning the violin in 1998 at the Triestingtal Music School, later adding the viola under Eva Schanznig. In 2004, he discovered the trombone, which he initially learned from Dieter Schickbichler and later from Stefan Thurner at the Triestingtal Music School. In 2010, he switched to Prof. Otmar Gaiswinkler (Vienna Symphony Orchestra) at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna. From 2013, he also took bass trombone lessons with Mark Gaal (Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra) and Christian Poitinger (Vienna Volksoper), and from 2017 with Dietmar Küblböck (Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra). In 2021, he graduated with honors from the MDW. In 2014, Nikolaus Singhania was twice awarded prizes at the International Competition of the Tchaikovsky Conservatory Moscow. His work as a substitute musician has taken him to the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, the NDR Radiophilharmonie Hannover, the Vienna State Opera Orchestra, the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, the Vienna State Opera Orchestra, the RSO Vienna, the Vienna Volksoper Orchestra, the Tonkünstler Orchestra of Lower Austria, the Klangforum Wien, and many others. Between 2016 and 2020, Nikolaus Singhania was a teacher of low brass at the Bad Fischau-Brunn Music School and conductor of the Marktmusikkapelle there. In 2019, he was on a fixed-term contract with the Vienna State Opera Stage Orchestra, as well as with the Vienna State Opera Orchestra in 2020 and the Bruckner Orchestra Linz in the 2020/21 season. The following season, he was engaged as principal trombonist with the Carinthian Symphony Orchestra/Stadttheater Klagenfurt. From fall 2022, Nikolaus Singhania was principal trombonist with the Bruckner Orchestra Linz, and since fall 2023 he has been deputy principal trombonist with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra.
Franz Winkler, Tuba
Born in Neunkirchen (Lower Austria), Franz Winkler studied bass tuba at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna under Prof. Nikolaus Schafferer and graduated with a Master of Arts degree with honors. While still a student, he had the opportunity to play in various professional orchestras. While still a student, he had the opportunity to play in various professional orchestras. He played as a substitute in renowned orchestras such as the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, the Vienna State Opera, the Staatskapelle Berlin, the Tonkünstler Orchestra of Lower Austria, the Vienna Volksoper, the RSO Vienna, the Bruckner Orchestra Linz, the Klagenfurt Symphony Orchestra, the DSO Berlin, the NDR Radio Philharmonic Orchestra Hanover, the orchestra of the Academic Opera and Ballet Theater Novosibirsk, the Dortmund Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Komische Oper Berlin, where he was under contract as a tuba player during the 2007/08 season. In 2004, Mr. Winkler was a prize winner at the “Musica Juventutis” competition for young musicians, followed by a solo recital in the Schubert Hall of the Vienna Konzerthaus, and in 2006 he was a special prize winner at the “Intermusica” soloist competition in Styria. Franz Winkler has also performed with famous ensembles, including the ensemble “die Reihe,” Klangforum Wien, the Ensemble Kontrapunkte, the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, the Ensemble ProBrass, the Vienna Brass Connection, the Ensemble xx. Jahrhundert, and the Austrian Wind Soloists. Since 2010, Franz Winkler has been principal tuba player in the Vienna Symphony Orchestra. He is also a member of the “SymphonikerBlås,” the “Wien-Berlin Blechbläserquintett,” and “Christian Mühlbacher’s USW,” as well as the original sound project of the “Mahler Academy Orchestra,” whose recording of Gustav Mahler’s 9th Symphony won first prize in the 2024 German Record Critics’ Award. In addition to his work as a tuba player, he taught bass tuba at the Schneebergklang Music School from 2006 to 2018. From 2016 to 2018, he was assistant to Univ. Prof. Michael Pircher at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna. In October 2018, he was appointed lecturer for bass tuba at the same university and has been teaching his own tuba class ever since. Franz Winkler is also a sought-after lecturer at master classes in Austria and abroad.