Sven Helbig

Helbig's work builds on the tradition of the Gesamtkunstwerk (all-embracing art form) and he often takes responsibility for concept, music and production at the same time.

• Name — Sven Helbig • Born — 30 October 1968 • Birthplace — Eisenhüttenstadt, East Germany • Genre — * Orchestral • modern classical • choral • electronic • Occupation — * Composer • record producer • arranger • Years Active — 1990s–present • Label — * Deutsche Grammophon • Neue Meister • Modern • Website — svenhelbig.com

• Illustration — 800th anniversary of Dresden, July 2006 Helbig was born in 1968 and grew up in Eisenhüttenstadt, East Germany. His first experience with music began with the clarinet, later he added guitar, piano and drums. In 1996, Helbig and hornist Markus Rindt founded the Dresden Symphony Orchestra. The orchestra is specialized in new, symphonic music in unusual productions and was the first European symphony orchestra to exclusively perform contemporary music. The self-taught composer's acclaimed debut album Pocket Symphonies has been released on the Deutsche Grammophon label. Since 2016, Helbig is playing live with his Forrklang Quartet. The ensemble is individually formed to fit the need of his current concert program. In 2017 he toured Europe, North- and Southamerica with his choir work I Eat the Sun and Drink the Rain. The production for choir, electronics and visuals has been staged at Milton Court Hall/London, Elbphilharmonie/Hamburg and Reina Sofia Hall/Madrid beside others. In 2025, a new arrangement for men's choir has been premiered in Basel, Switzerland. In recent years, the artist has delved into work as a director. He directed music videos, stage shows and theatrical multimedia events. For example, he produced the High-rise Symphony on Dresden's 800th anniversary during which the orchestra's musicians sat on individual balconies of an old East German apartment building. Since 2017, Sven hosts his weekly radio show Schöne Töne on Berlin's Radio 1, celebrating music history and contemporary artists. In 2022 he was honored with the Art Award by the city of Dresden. The cover artwork he created in the style of 17th century vanitas painting for his album Skills (2022) was shown in a joint exhibition with Gerhard Richter, Tony Cragg and William Kentridge. In 2025, he released Requiem A on Deutsche Grammophon, based largely on his own texts. The work was premiered on February 9, 2025, in Dresden with the Staatskapelle Dresden, the Dresdner Kreuzchor, and opera singer René Pape. To mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, the piece was performed before an audience of 7,000 at Vienna’s Heldenplatz together with the Wiener Symphoniker, and in October it was presented at London’s Westminster Central Hall.

• 2004: Premiere of The Battleship Potemkin at London's Trafalgar Square • 2006: Production of the high-rise symphony at Dresden's 800th anniversary (director, light design, music) • 2006: The Mover Ballet, 250 solar panels danced to his music during the opening ceremony of the world's largest solar park in Arnheim • 2007: MTV Europe Music Awards (EMA) Snoop Dogg and orchestra (arranger) • 2011: Premier performance of the ballet The Most Incredible Thing in London at Sadler's Wells Theatre, music by Pet Shop Boys with orchestrations by Sven Helbig • 2014: A Man from the Future, work for orchestra, choir, speaker and electronics about the life of Alan Turing by Pet Shop Boys, premiered by BBC Proms at Royal Albert Hall, (orchestrations)