Eytan Pessen

Eytan Pessen was born in 1961 in Haifa

Eytan Pessen was born in Haifa on 30 August 1961 to parents of German-Jewish heritage. He finished high school at Ironi He in Haifa and studied piano with Nilly Shilo.

He studied piano, composition and musicology at the Rubin Academy of Tel Aviv University, earning a bachelor's degree in 1983 and a master's degree in 1984. He continued at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia and the Juilliard School in New York. In New York he worked as a pianist and coach for the Metropolitan Opera young artists program.

From 1991 to 2006 he worked at the Stuttgart Opera, first as head of music staff and from 2001 as casting director. There he promoted lesser-known baroque and classical works and created a chamber music series for the orchestra. From 2007 to 2010 he was artistic advisor to the RUHR.2010 festival, where he worked with composer Hans Werner Henze.

From 2010 to 2013 he was opera director of the Semperoper in Dresden. He expanded the permanent ensemble, worked with young directors and staged Weinberger's Schwanda the Bagpiper, which he also brought to Palermo in 2013. He also advised Teatro San Carlo in Naples and Teatro Massimo in Palermo.

He teaches voice and piano at opera houses and academies, including in Munich since 2007, Frankfurt since 2008 and Zurich since 2014. He also gives master classes and has judged singing competitions.