Biography

American tenor Christopher Pfund has performed to critical acclaim with countless major orchestras and oratorio festivals throughout North America including the Cleveland Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Houston Symphony, the Detroit Symphony, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, the Bach Festival Society of Winter Park, New York Oratorio Society and the Orchestra of St. Luke’s.  International engagements have included performances in the Czech Republic, Germany, Mexico and Brazil.  Critics have praised his “rounded vocal beauty” and The New York Times called his voice an “attractive tenor [that] helps define a sympathetic character.”

Universally recognized for his irreverent portrayals of the roasting swan in Orff’s Carmina Burana, Pfund has made the role a pillar of his career with over 150 performances on three continents.  His wide repertoire includes not only the standard Baroque masterpieces such as Bach’s Mass in B minor and Handel’s Messiah but also much of the 20th century canon of concert repertoire including Britten’s War Requiem and the Klaus-Narr from Schoenberg’s Gurre-Lieder.

While best known for his oratorio work with orchestra, Pfund has also enjoyed success on the opera stage, including performances with Glimmerglass Opera, New York City Opera, Florentine Opera, and Santa Fe Opera to name a few.  An impassioned performer of contemporary music, Pfund has regularly collaborated with composers and artists in cutting-edge New York venues including the Brooklyn Academy of Music, the Theater for the New City and The Performing Garage. A consummate recitalist, Pfund regularly presents performances of the song cycles of Schubert, Schumann, Britten and Brahms as well as other celebrated composers of the classical song literature.

Recordings include the title role in Britten’s Albert Herring on the Vox label, Distant Playing Fields: Vocal Music of Amy Beach and William Mayer on Newport Classics, and Carmina Burana with Fabio Mechetti and the Jacksonville Symphony.  Mr. Pfund holds degrees from the University of Northern Colorado, the Manhattan School of Music and was a 20^th Century Song Recitalist at the Banff Centre in Banff, Canada.  Awards include the Richard F. Gold Career Grant from the Shoshana Foundation.

Click for a representative sampling of Mr. Pfund’s repertoire.

Mr. Pfund is the Co-Director of the Idaho Bach Festival. Founded in 2011, the Idaho Bach Festival is set in the beautiful architectural and natural landscapes of the University of Idaho and the Palouse.