Märkl’s 08/9 Lyon season culminated in a Summer tour of Luzern, Bad Kissingen, Rheingau, Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Salle Pleyel and the BBC Proms (Märkl’s London symphonic debut). In October 09 he tours Spain with the MDR, and touring plans with both orchestras stretch well into the future. Märkl is part-way through recording the complete symphonic works of Debussy for Naxos with ONL, to excellent reviews, and in Leipzig is recording Mendelssohn and Schumann, also for Naxos.

Märkl has long been a regular guest with leading German orchestras, and in 2008 returned to the Munich Philharmonic and the Radio Sinfonie Orchester Berlin. Before assuming the musical directorship in Lyon, he was a regular guest with the Orchestre de Paris and the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France. He has also conducted orchestras in Scandinavia (Helsinki Philharmonic, Danish Radio), the UK (English Chamber Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony, Royal Scottish National), and the Netherlands (Rotterdam and Netherlands Philharmonic and the Dutch Radio Philharmonic). Future guesting plans include returns to many of these orchestras, and debuts with the Czech Philharmonic, Oslo Philharmonic, Vienna Symphony, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Residentie Orkest and Zurich Tonhalle.

Every season he conducts the NHK Symphony (this year being no exception), with whom in 2006 he recorded the complete Schumann symphonies as part of an ongoing commitment to EXTON Records. He also appears regularly at the Pacific Music Festival and with the Mito Chamber Orchestra. Between 2001 and 2004 he conducted Japan’s first-ever complete Ring cycle with the NHK and Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestras.

Märkl was until 2006 Permanent Conductor of the Bavarian State Opera in Munich. He conducted a complete Ring Cycle at the Deutsche Oper, has also been a regular guest at the Berlin State Opera, Vienna State Opera and the Semper Oper Dresden with whom he toured to Japan in November 2007, conducting Tannhäuser. He made his Royal Opera House debut with Götterdämmerung in 1996 and at the Metropolitan Opera with Il Trovatore in 1998.

Märkl has conducted many of North America’s top orchestras including those of Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, Minnesota, St. Louis, Baltimore, Montreal, Toronto, Seattle, Atlanta and Dallas, and maintains continuing relationships with several of them – returning last season to Baltimore, St Louis and Toronto as well as appearing with the NSO Washington, and with a reinvitation to Philadelphia coming up in 2011.

Born in Munich, his (German) father was a distinguished Concertmaster and his (Japanese) mother a solo pianist. Märkl studied violin, piano and conducting at the Musikhochschule in Hannover, going on to study with Sergiu Celibidache in Munich and with Gustav Meier in Michigan. In 1986 he won the conducting competition of the Deutsche Musikrat and a year later won a scholarship from the Boston Symphony Orchestra to study at Tanglewood with Leonard Bernstein and Seiji Ozawa. Soon afterwards he had a string of appointments in European opera houses followed by his first music directorships at the Staatstheater in Saarbrücken (1991-94) and at the Mannheim Nationaltheater (1994-2000).

Jun Märkl is represented by Susie McLeod at Intermusica, smcleod@intermusica.co.uk.

November 2009 / 522 words. Not to be altered without permission. Please destroy all previous biographical material.

As of December 2009

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Orchestre National de Lyon/ Debussy Orchestral Works Vol 3 (Naxos)
“Over the years I’ve grown attached to conductor Jun Markl’s Debussy series with the Orchestre National de Lyon as it has progressed volume by volume.

…because it is so lucid, with great clarity of detail, it seems almost transparent; and because it is so transparent, the music can appear to lack its sultry sense of heat. In fact what you realise is that, instead of listening to an impressionistic wash of ravishing orchestral sound, you are hearing detail gleaming from within the textures.”
Glasgow Herald, May 2010

Seattle Symphony Orchestra/Wagner, Schumann, Beethoven
"During a magnificent stretch at the conclusion of the Intermezzo, the line between soloist and symphony blurred, the music exploded into the realm of dazzling energy, and everyone in the hall was breathing as one.  It is for these kinds of moments that people go to live concerts: when one no longer just listens to the music but becomes a part of it.“
Seattle Times, May 2010

Orchestre National de Lyon/Debussy Images/Ibéria/Rondes de Printemps (Naxos)
“In Jun Märkl’s expert hands one can immediately sense Debussy using orchestration as a means of articulating each work’s form....he magically evokes iridescent textures from which points of sound emerge like piquant sources of light on a canvas. A captivating performance enhanced by four bonus orchestrations“
Classic FM April 2010

Guerzenich Orchestra Koeln / Messian, Wagner
“The Guerzenich Orchestra played (Messiaen Poemes pour Mi) at the top of their game, with lean sound, transparent, colourful, pictorial - and without any sugary religious kitsch.”
Koelner Stadtanzeiger, February 2010

“Under Jun Maerkl's direction the Guerzenich Orchestra's accompaniment (in Wesendonck Lieder) was highly responsive and full of empathy. A perfect example of sensitive musicianship was ‘Stehe still’ with its driving rhythms ending in tender fragility.”
Koelnische Rundschau, February 2010

“The heady atmosphere (of the Wesendonck Lieder) was largely down to the conductor Jun Maerkl, who differentiated the individual voices and emphasised the finely shaded tonality.... Jun Maerkl guided the disciplined musicians of the Guerzenich Orchestra through this narcotic music with unerring instinct. The conductor demonstrated his affinity with Wagner's music if anything even more strongly in the Overture to Tristan.”
Bonner Generalanzeiger, February 2010

Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra / Schumann Symphony No.3 ‘Rhenish’ / Mendelssohn Hebrides Overture & Symphony No.4 ‘Italian’
“It seemed that Märkl had done his homework painstakingly, proving to be as facially expressive as he was nimble and pointed with the baton. The players responded accordingly, the timpani resounding as the sole percussion, and the horn section welcomingly together and particularly sonorous.”
Liverpool Echo, January 2010

Orchestre National de Lyon / Mozart Overture Il Seraglio, Mozart Horn Concerto, Strauss Alpine Symphony
“The extraordinary Il Seraglio overture, alert, joyous, very Rossini-esque, showed too how Maerkl and the ONL are just as much at ease bringing to life Mozart's fleetfooted and intimate Turkish conceit, as they are in the larger symphonic repertoire.

Transported and overcome by these great waves of lyricsm (of Strauss' Alpine Symphony), one can judge the full extent of the work accomplished by Jun Maerkl over the past few seasons: he has brought to the ONL that particular German sound which is essential for any great orchestra - a sensuality which issues from the depths of the music, and which is rooted in the work's architecture. Thanks to Jun Maerkl, the ONL is one of the very best orchestras in Europe.”
Liberation, 5 December 2009

Orchestre National de Lyon / Ravel Daphnis et Chloe (Naxos)
“Sous la houlette de l'Alemand Jun Märkl...ce ballet est un jaillissement continu des coleurs gorgées...”

"Under the leadership of German Jun Märkl...this ballet is a continual outpouring of gorgeous colours..."
Valeurs Actuelles, July 2009

“Jun Märkl a repris le flambeau. La souplesse de sa direction....est ici parfaitement en situation. La réussite est évidente et les coleurs enveloppantes, luxuriantes dans la Bacchanale finale, sont plus que réjouissantes"

“Jun Märkl was in control. The seamlessness of his conducting...was here perfectly suited. The success was clear and the colours, enveloping and luxurious in the Bacchanale finale, were more than gratifying."
Le Tout, Lyon, 29 August 2009

Orchestre National de Lyon / Debussy (Naxos)
“A richly satisfying collection, immaculately recorded, with its full measure of rarities.”
Gramophone, March 2009

“The opening Pelléas suite sets the tone, with Märkl offering a moody account of some of the moodiest music in the French repertoire. Mystery is at the heart of his approach to the Nocturnes, too. And the three piano studies (Nos 9, 10 and 12) turn out to be unusually effective in orchestral guise.”
Irish Times, January 2009

Munich Philharmonic / Messiaen Turangalila Symphony
“Jun Märkl, the Munich Philharmonic, the pianist Steven Osborne and Philippe Arrieus on the Onde Martenot… all revelled in every last drop of striking sensuality in the many passages with ‘Love’ in the title.

They also made a veritable ecstasy of colour out of the valedictory frenzy of joyful love ‘Joie du sang des etoiles’ (composed last), which they were able to intensify yet further in the ‘developpement de l'amour’ and the actual Finale. The orchestral musicians looked as if they were having as much fun with the loud as with the quiet passages, with the emphatic uplifting moments as with the ever-circling pianos, just as though they had a Tchaikovsky symphony in front of them.”
Suddeutsche Zeitung, December 2008

“Many of his colleagues limit themselves to showy effects.... Jun Märkl trod a different path... He emphasised tradition rather than modernity. His Turangalila was reminiscent of the music of Gershwin or Bernstein (the latter having conducted the premiere in 1949 in Boston). Märkl let the blocks of sound fragment with furious tempi and allowed Steven Osborne to thunder away at the piano. The electronic Ondes Martenot vibrated like a Wagnerian heroine. Märkl's Messiaen is not just sexed-up Bruckner, but an intensification of the 2nd Act of Tristan into a dionysian frenzy.”
Munich Abendzeitung, December 2008

Royal Scottish National Orchestra / Liszt & Tchaikovsky
“…these performances revelled in the sensitive colourings of the music – Liszt’s volatile persona brought to life in a highly sensitised interpretation, while the “Pathétique’s” anguished opening and close were delivered with agonising care and patience.”
The Scotsman, December 2008

Orchestre National de Lyon / Amsterdam Concertgebouw / Debussy, Strauss & Saint-Saens
“The ONL under Jun Maerkl gave a marvellous accompaniment from start to finish to Anne Schwanewilms for Im Abendrot... The desperately sad sonority of the beautiful Adagio [in the Saint-Saens Organ Concerto] was superb. In the closing Maestoso, the organ and orchestra let rip.”
Trouw, 31 July 2008

“Here, too, Jun Maerkl balanced superbly, and integrated the organ like a veritable wind band rising above the musicians.”
NRC Handelsblad, 30 July 2008

Orchestre National de Lyon / Debussy (Naxos)
“Jun Märkl creates a deeply sensual, headily intoxicating soundscape... His supple handling of phrasing, rhythm, texture and dynamics coalesces into ecstatic sequences…

No less remarkable is Märkl's handling of the three 'symphonic sketches' that constitute La mer, throughout which he hypnotically translates the play of light on the water into musical sound so exotically enticing that it feels as though one could reach out and touch it.

One of the finest discs Naxos has ever released.”
Classic FM Magazine, Orchestral disc of the month, July 2008

“L'atmosphere de sensualite intime et discrete etablie par Jun Maerkl et ses musiciens est toujours parfaitement controlee, portee par un gout de l'epure que le chef partage avec Kent Nagano; chaque section a une place claire, l'arriere-plan demeure toujours lisible.”

“The atmosphere of intimate and discrete sensuality established by Jun Maerkl and his musicians is always perfectly controlled, carried by a taste for which the conductor shares with Kent Nagano; each section clearly has its place and the overall structure is always visible.”
Diapason, June 2008

Orchestre National de Lyon / Salle Pleyel / Wagner & Mozart
“Märkl trouve d'emble le ton juste pour restituer l'ample lyrisme de l'oeuvre. Ce concert confirme l'opinion exprimee dans nos coloennes a l'occasion de ses recents enregistrements: Jun Märkl est bien un chef a suivre."

"Märkl straightaway found just the right tone to restore the ample lyricism of the work. This concert confirmed the opinion expressed in this column when reviewing his recent CD releases: Jun Märkl is definitely a conductor to watch."
Diapason, June 2008

Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra / Schumann, Borodin & Tchaikovsky
“...Märkl, in his Milwaukee debut, alternately took his cues from his soloist (Hilary Hahn/Tchaikovsky Concerto) and egged her on in a lively give and take. This stylish maestro, elegant and accurate of gesture, is quite sure of what he wants.
Märkl and the orchestra made it all as charmingly clear and sweet as the sunlight that broke through the clouds on Friday afternoon.”
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, June 2008

Orchestre National de Lyon / Cologne / Debussy, Ravel, Manuel de Falla
"Sein Dirigat verbindet Eleganz und Energie in höchst ansprechender Weise."
Kölner Stadt Anzeiger, 17 February 2008

Orchestre National de Lyon / Debussy
"The Orchestre National de Lyon unfolds with somptuous sonorities of a breathtaking beauty under the baton of their galvanized and inspired conductor."
Le Progrès, September 2007

Orchestre National de Lyon / Vienna Musikverein / Messiaen, Ravel, Mahler
"The musicians gave further proof of their feeling for the different facets of sound in the second ballet suite from Ravel's Daphnis and Chloe. The wind section's decorative motifs rose above the gloomy backdrop of the basses, the strings played with subtle nuances and a dancing lilt. Märkl skillfully let the sound bloom whilst avoiding too much luxuriance."
Der Standard, March 2007

Baltimore Symphony / Wagner, Messiaen, Debussy, Berlioz
"German conductor Jun Märkl, in his third engagement with the BSO since 2002, had the ensemble playing at the top of its game Friday night at Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, thinking about the color and character of each note, breathing as one.
All evening, the connection between podium and orchestra was as effortless as it was galvanizing and rewarding."
Baltimore Sun, February 2007

Orchestre National de Lyon / Mahler Symphony No. 3
"…an absolutely explosive performance...with a powerful orchestra and a conductor completely persuasive in his treatment of the Mahler score."
resmusica.com , February 2007

Royal Scottish National Orchestra / Stravinky's Petrushka
"...a top-drawer RSNO performance throughout Stravinsky's Petrushka ... characterised by colourful, zesty and bitingly-rhythmic orchestral playing... I cannot think when the auditorium last sounded this alive to the sound of the RSNO, notably in the wallop at the end of the Shrove-tide Fair and the pounding reprise of the Coachmen's Dance."
The Herald, October 2006

"...Märkl and the RSNO struck exalted heights, drawing from Stravinsky's score an electrifying precision and colourful sense of animation and imagination. On that evidence alone, Märkl ought to be asked back."
The Scotsman, October 2006

Semper Oper, Dresden / Weber's Euranthe
"Unter Jun Märkls Händen entfaltete die Sächsische Staatskapelle einen wundervoll durchsichtigen, farbenreichen Klang, der Webers Partitur bestens zu Gesicht stand und den Sängerstimmen alle Gelegenheit zur Entfaltung bot. Trotz Liebe zum Detail lieiß er den Spannungsbogen nie abreißen, balancierte den Orchesterklang zwischen Iyrischer Zartheit und dramatischer Wucht gekonnt aus. Vielleicht - oder besser: hoffentlich - also der Beginn einer "Euryanthe"-Renaissance?"
U. Ehrensberger, Das Opernglas, May 2006

"With Jun Märkl's lean, intelligent conducting and a cast of stars, this is a landmark interpretation.
What Nemirova and Märkl have done is to place the work firmly in its context, an environment of postwar trauma infused with repressive Biedermeier tensions. Märkl spares the work anachronistic romanticism, approaching it from a background of Beethoven and Schubert. In this brisk, electrifying reading, it is astonishing how much foreshadowed Wagner can be heard."
Financial Times, March 2006

"Praise in abundance for the orchestra who were extremely well-prepared and sensitively led by Jun Märkl, for the glorious chorus and for a cast whose command of this complex, difficult work left nothing to be desired...

In the way his orchestra were alert to every nuance of colour, both in the many solo passages and in the tutti passages - interjections scattered throughout the lyrical drama to reinforce it - Jun Märkl showed how this Euryanthe could have been viable, if only the production had done, what good conductors do: let the work speak for itself. "
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, February 2006

"Of course Weber's own orchestra have just the right woodwind timbre, but Jun Märkl managed by dint of absolute transparency and constant vigilance to make us almost forget that Weber gives us many beautiful moments in this work but never a logical musical whole. Märkl conjured up phrases out of thin air and he flitted into imaginary depths by whipping up extreme dynamics. He was helped by a glorious chorus and a fabulous German-speaking house ensemble, which is rarely the case nowadays."
Die Welt, February 2006

"Jun Märkl maintains the momentum throughout the three-hour work, keeping even the large choral tableaux buoyant, keeping a modern Weber in his sights and achieving wonderful results with his slimmed-down approach."
Der Tagesspiegel, February 2006

"Jun Märkl echoed the production with a slimmed-down, transparent interpretation devoid of any cheap romantic thrills. Under his direction the Staatskapelle were feather-light and full of nuance, and the Chorus made a persuasive contribution to the success of the whole evening. The excellent cast together with the orchestra and chorus all proved the incontestable qualities of this performance of Euryanthe and gave a fitting platform to this neglected music."
Freie Presse, February 2006

"...the orchestra, who under Jun Märkl gave us a very transparent, finely-differentiated Weber, devoid of sentimentality or excess. The cast was marvellously supported by the glorious chorus…"
Sächsische Zeitung, February 2006

"We heard a wonderfully transparent, slimmed-down sound."
Dresdner Neueste Nachrichten, February 2006

Orchestre National De Lyon Gala Concert / Wagner, Prokofiev, Dvorak
"We shan't dwell further upon the qualities of this orchestra who surpassed themselves thanks to the importance of the occasion and the talent of their conductor…Pointless to dwell upon. This concert revealed the strong sense of fellowship between the maestro and his troops. Perhaps the best present the ONL could offer its public".
Le Progrès, November 2005

Orchestre National De Lyon Gala Concert / Liszt, Tomasi, Dvorak
"Precise and elegant, his conducting brings out the best qualities of the whole orchestra, a Rolls Royce which can happily stand comparison with the best European ensembles. "
Le Progrès, November 2005.

Orchestre National De Lyon / Liszt & Messiaen
"The conducting was precise, full of contrasts, enthusiastic and motivating. A treat for the ears."
Lyon Figaro, October 2005

"Audacious and demanding, this programme cohered well. The musicians played it with energy and talent in a lyrical and rigorous interpretation generated by the inspired direction of their new boss."
Le Progrès, October 2005

Orchestre National De Lyon / Beethoven & Liszt
"superbly conducted (by heart) by Jun Märkl who can do no wrong. The surgical precision of his conducting made for a lean, flexible performance of refined suppleness, which was more reminiscent of the Sturm and Drang influence from Haydn rather than a heavier Romanticism. The musicians played it with faultless musicality, masterly technique, and were quite clearly enjoying themselves hugely."
Le Progrès, October 2005

"Jun Märkl conducted an "Eroica" the likes of which we have not heard for many years here, full of fire and irresistable momentum: aural fireworks of which the tiniest rocket, carefully placed, acquired devastating meaning. "
Le Tout Lyon, October 2005

Chicago Symphony Orchestra / Mozart & R.Strauss
"Dramatic tension and energetic convulsions, CSO trademarks when it tackles Strauss, permeated the brilliantine performances of Death and Transfiguration and Don Juan in the second half. But Märkl also managed to bring forth the tone poems' softer, graceful side, their Mozartean moments. The orchestra responded to him like the precision machine that it could be, a willing collaborator in his cogently theatrical and never merely showy interpretations. Märkl has proved himself a maestro to watch."
Chicago Tribune

West German Radio Symphony Orchestra / Prokofiev
"Jun Märkl is one of the most interesting conductors of his generation, knows how to let music bloom with an inspirational, impulsive physicality. An elegant, precise conductor, and a sympathetic and cheering presence. He understands how to choose and effect well, understands dynamic developments, and how to give well-measured effects. He is a pleasure to watch…"
Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung

NDR Symphony Orchestra / Debussy, Canteloube, Mendelssohn
"…the orchestra worked itself up into a collective roar, with intoxicating effect, but Jun Märkl never allowed these moments to become violent. Sometimes his conducting seemed almost dance-like, his left hand, full of gesture, ensured fine tuning. The melodic passages, which brought to mind the Scottish expanses at twilight, never failed to impress."
Die Welt

Minnesota Orchestra / Schwertsik & Schubert
"Märkl, a Munich native, opened the evening with an impressively weighty, spacious account of the Overture to Weber's Der Freischütz, and closed with a detailed, well-paced Schubert Symphony in C Major The Great."
Minneapolis Star Tribune

St. Louis Symphony Orchestra / Brahms
"Jun Märkl is by now a familiar figure here, and a welcome one. He is graceful, even balletic in his movements, but in a natural way; there's never the suggestion that it's all for show or part of an act. His conducting is clear and meaningful."
St. Louis Post-Dispatch