Matthias Pintscher (born 29 January 1971) is a German composer and conductor.
Pintscher was born in Marl, North Rhine-Westphalia. As a youth, he studied the violin and conducting.[1] He began his music studies with Giselher Klebe in 1988 at the Hochschule für Musik Detmold, in Detmold. In 1990, he met Hans Werner Henze, and in 1991 and 1992, he was invited to Henze's summer school in Montepulciano, Italy. He later studied with German composer and flutist Manfred Trojahn. He held a Daniel R. Lewis Young Composer Fellowship with the Cleveland Orchestra from 2000 to 2002.[1]
In October 2010, Pintscher became the first Artist-in-Association with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. In June 2012, the Ensemble intercontemporain announced the appointment of Pintscher as its next music director, beginning in the September 2013–14 season, with an initial contract of three years.[2] Pintscher is scheduled to conclude his tenure with the Ensemble intercontemporain at the close of the 2022-2023 seasons. With the 2014-2015 season, Pintscher became artist-in-residence with the Danish Radio for a period of three years. He serves as a professor of composition at the Juilliard School. For the 2014/15 season, he was the artist-in-residence at the Cologne Philharmonie.
In March 2023, Pintscher first guest conducted the Kansas City Symphony.[3] On the basis of this appearance, the Kansas City Symphony announced in May 2023 the appointment of Pintscher as its next music director, effective with the 2024–2025 season, with an initial contract of five seasons.[4][5]
Pintscher has lived in New York City[6] since 2008.