Mark Rohde

  • "What a wonderful act of storytelling, and an interpretation both thoughtful and subtly playful. Even at the opening of the ‘Great Gate of Kiev,’ Rohde’s interest lay not in crude sonic spectacle, but in the careful differentiation of individual sound layers.”

    Christoph Forsthoff, Schweriner Volkszeitung

  • “Staying very close to the score, he revealed a wealth of shifting light and perspective through magnificent horns, sparkling woodwinds, and precise strings.”

    Mathias Wiedemann, Main-Post

  • “Rohde conducts with clarity and precision where rhythmic complexity demands it, while giving the Philharmonic players space where intense mutual listening is required.”

    Mathias Wiedemann, Main-Post

  • "The Mecklenburg State Orchestra under its General Music Director Mark Rohde plays the score with buoyant wit—colorfully shimmering, at times highly dramatic—carrying the ensemble on velvet gloves without ever sacrificing expressivity.”.”

    Thomas Kunzmann, ioco.de

  • “Mark Rohde and the devotedly playing orchestra bring the color-exploding score vividly to life—with rhythmic drive, striking sensuality, and exotic sweetness.”

    Götz Thieme, Opernwelt

Born in Hamburg, Mark Rohde is General Music Director of the Mainfranken Theater Würzburg.

Mr. Rohde has conducted leading orchestras including the Munich Philharmonic, the Gewandhaus Orchestra Leipzig, the Beethoven Orchestra Bonn, the NDR Radio Philharmonic, the Munich Symphony Orchestra, the Wuppertal Symphony Orchestra, and the Lithuanian National Philharmonic. He appears regularly in concert with distinguished soloists such as Antje Weithaas, Nils Mönkemeyer, and Maximilian Hornung, and guest engagements have taken him, among others, to the Staatstheater Nuremberg, Opera Bonn, the Staatstheater Kassel, and Theater St. Gallen. He has further performed as the principal conductor in several large scale tours through Asia.

Following violin studies in Frankfurt am Main and conducting studies with Prof. Christof Prick in Hamburg, Mr. Rohde began his career as a répétiteur and Kapellmeister. In 2011, he was appointed First Kapellmeister at the Hannover State Opera. His repertoire there included, alongside the major Italian operas, a particular focus on late-Romantic and contemporary works. In Hannover, Mr. Rohde worked with renowned singers such as Thomas Hampson, Neil Shicoff, and Bryn Terfel. In 2019, he moved to the National Theatre Mannheim as Deputy General Music Director; from 2020 to 2025, he served as General Music Director of the Mecklenburg State Theatre Schwerin.

In 2022, Mr. Rohde released his first CD featuring works by the composer Emilie Mayer on the Dabringhaus und Grimm label. In 2023 he conducted the premiere of Giselle at the Deutsche Oper am Rhein, and in 2024 conducted the Gewandhaus Orchestra at the Leipzig Opera in performances of La Bohème and Hänsel und Gretel, as well as at the Leipzig Opera Ball. In September 2024, Mr. Rohde served as President of the Jury of the prestigious International Aeolus Wind Competition in Düsseldorf.

In 2024, Mr. Rohde conducted the central state ceremony for the Day of German Unity, as well as the ZDF broadcast Christmas with the Federal President. In December 2025, he recorded concertos by the composer Josef Schelb with the Munich Radio Orchestra, Oliver Triendl, Hervé Joulain, and other soloists; the CD will be released in 2026.

Mr. Rohde is deeply committed to contemporary music, and has been a frequent guest at the Munich Biennale. He has furthermore conducted world premieres by composers such as Jörg Widmann, Giorgio Battistelli, Peter Michael Hamel, and Klaus Lang.

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