Mathieu Dufour appointed to the Chair of Flute
The French flutist Mathieu Dufour has been appointed to the Chair of Flute at the Hanns Eisler School of Music in Berlin. He has been taking over the flute class of Prof. Benoît Fromanger, who had previously taught at the Eisler School for 19 years, as a visiting professor since the winter term of 2023/24.
Prof. Mathieu Dufour, born in Paris in 1973, was principal flutist of the Berlin Philharmonic from 2015 to 2021. At the age of just 20, in 1993, he became principal flutist of the Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse, subsequently holding principal positions at the Paris Opera, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra.
Dufour began playing the flute at the age of eight and studied with Madeleine Chassang and Maxence Larrieu at the Lyon Conservatoire. In 1990, he won second prize at the International Jean-Pierre Rampal Flute Competition and was a prize-winner at international flute competitions in Budapest and Kobe, Japan.
As a soloist, Dufour has performed under conductors such as Pierre Boulez, Christoph Eschenbach, David Robertson, Fabio Luisi and Nicholas McGegan. He regularly performs in international concerts and solo recitals in major concert halls; as a chamber musician, he has collaborated with Mitsuko Uchida, Pinchas Zukerman, the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio, Julia Fischer, Eric LeSage and members of the Berlin Philharmonic.
His discography includes, among others, a solo album featuring sonatas by Prokofiev, Martin and Hindemith on Harmonia Mundi, Poulenc’s complete chamber music, and Roussel’s complete works for flute on Saphir Records.
Dufour is passionate about teaching the younger generation and gives masterclasses internationally.