About
Joachim Saxenborn is a Swedish conductor, concert-, and opera singer, composer, and vocal teacher with an international profile, educated at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna.
Joachim Saxenborn is a Swedish conductor, concert and opera singer, composer, and vocal teacher with an international profile. He studied at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna and is known for his artistic versatility—equally at home on the concert stage and in avant-garde musical theatre.
Saxenborn is the founder of Saxenborn Singers, a choir devoted to twentieth-century and contemporary repertoire. Since it's founding the ensemble has premiered major works by acclaimed composers including Stefan Klaverdal and Johan-Magnus Sjöberg. In 2022, he founded Ensemble Voyage, focusing on new a cappella music.
He has performed at international festivals including Performatik Festival (Belgium), Festival Csillags Zene (Hungary), Gracelands Festival (Ireland), and Lund International Choral Festival (Sweden), and has appeared at events hosted by Swedish embassies and chambers of commerce in the Netherlands and Hungary.
His collaboration with visual artist Ulla von Brandenburg has resulted in major theatre productions across Europe. He leads a highly regarded choral education program in Sweden and has conducted numerous workshops for young aspiring conductors. He is also co-author of the book The Singing City.
Saxenborn is a lyric baritone with a distinctive artistic profile spanning recital, opera, oratorio and contemporary music theatre. His work is marked by a strong commitment to new music alongside thoughtful interpretations of repertoire ranging from early Baroque to Classical opera.
He has appeared at leading international festivals including Wiener Festwochen and Festival Alfonso Ortiz Tirado, and has established an international profile through performances and projects across Europe, alongside a growing artistic presence in Latin America.
A dedicated interpreter of contemporary music, he has collaborated with composers and premiered new operatic works, including Beredskapsarbetaren by Jonatan Sersam with Opera Alltet and in the staged oratorio Katharina och Martin – en passion by Johan-Magnus Sjöberg, composed for the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.
Alongside his work in contemporary opera, Saxenborn has performed repertoire ranging from early Baroque to Classical opera, including Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea at Schlosstheater Schönbrunn in Vienna and Johann Gottlieb Naumann’s Osiris with the Malmö Lyric Opera Ensemble in Sweden and Denmark.
His international engagements have further included invitations as Guest of Honour at cultural events and benefit galas in Mexico.
He was a finalist and recipient of the Audience Prize at the 12th International Nico Dostal Competition in Austria.
Saxenborn is a composer working with choirs and interdisciplinary projects, with a strong focus on collaboration and cross-disciplinary artistic processes.
He has created scores for the contemporary art films Chorspiel and Baisse-toi montagne, lève-toi vallon by Ulla von Brandenburg, as well as the performance work Waheide – how do you pronounce your name? by Maria Lepistö.
His work has been presented at festivals and venues including Performa 07 (USA), Gracelands Festival (Ireland), Performatik Festival and Atlas Museum (Belgium), Pilar Corrias Gallery and The Common Guild (UK), the Contemporary Art Centre (Latvia), and Lilith Performance Studio (Sweden).
His recent work includes the choral piece I rörelse (In Motion), a commissioned work for Medborgarskolan, premiered in May 2026.
A passionate and dedicated teacher with nearly three decades of experience, Saxenborn coaches singers and leads workshops and masterclasses, frequently collaborating with speech therapist and voice researcher Professor Viveka Lyberg Åhlander. He also participates in research projects focusing on choral singing and the human voice.
May 2026
Saxenborn is the founder of Saxenborn Singers, a choir devoted to twentieth-century and contemporary repertoire. Since it's founding the ensemble has premiered major works by acclaimed composers including Stefan Klaverdal and Johan-Magnus Sjöberg. In 2022, he founded Ensemble Voyage, focusing on new a cappella music.
He has performed at international festivals including Performatik Festival (Belgium), Festival Csillags Zene (Hungary), Gracelands Festival (Ireland), and Lund International Choral Festival (Sweden), and has appeared at events hosted by Swedish embassies and chambers of commerce in the Netherlands and Hungary.
His collaboration with visual artist Ulla von Brandenburg has resulted in major theatre productions across Europe. He leads a highly regarded choral education program in Sweden and has conducted numerous workshops for young aspiring conductors. He is also co-author of the book The Singing City.
Saxenborn is a lyric baritone with a distinctive artistic profile spanning recital, opera, oratorio and contemporary music theatre. His work is marked by a strong commitment to new music alongside thoughtful interpretations of repertoire ranging from early Baroque to Classical opera.
He has appeared at leading international festivals including Wiener Festwochen and Festival Alfonso Ortiz Tirado, and has established an international profile through performances and projects across Europe, alongside a growing artistic presence in Latin America.
A dedicated interpreter of contemporary music, he has collaborated with composers and premiered new operatic works, including Beredskapsarbetaren by Jonatan Sersam with Opera Alltet and in the staged oratorio Katharina och Martin – en passion by Johan-Magnus Sjöberg, composed for the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.
Alongside his work in contemporary opera, Saxenborn has performed repertoire ranging from early Baroque to Classical opera, including Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea at Schlosstheater Schönbrunn in Vienna and Johann Gottlieb Naumann’s Osiris with the Malmö Lyric Opera Ensemble in Sweden and Denmark.
His international engagements have further included invitations as Guest of Honour at cultural events and benefit galas in Mexico.
He was a finalist and recipient of the Audience Prize at the 12th International Nico Dostal Competition in Austria.
Saxenborn is a composer working with choirs and interdisciplinary projects, with a strong focus on collaboration and cross-disciplinary artistic processes.
He has created scores for the contemporary art films Chorspiel and Baisse-toi montagne, lève-toi vallon by Ulla von Brandenburg, as well as the performance work Waheide – how do you pronounce your name? by Maria Lepistö.
His work has been presented at festivals and venues including Performa 07 (USA), Gracelands Festival (Ireland), Performatik Festival and Atlas Museum (Belgium), Pilar Corrias Gallery and The Common Guild (UK), the Contemporary Art Centre (Latvia), and Lilith Performance Studio (Sweden).
His recent work includes the choral piece I rörelse (In Motion), a commissioned work for Medborgarskolan, premiered in May 2026.
A passionate and dedicated teacher with nearly three decades of experience, Saxenborn coaches singers and leads workshops and masterclasses, frequently collaborating with speech therapist and voice researcher Professor Viveka Lyberg Åhlander. He also participates in research projects focusing on choral singing and the human voice.
May 2026