Tetzlaff made his first recording – Bartok’s Violin Concerto No. 2 – with the London Philharmonic Orchestra in 1992 and made his debut with the Berlin Philharmonic with the same work three years later. His most recent release on the Ondine label, the Elgar and Adès Violin Concertos with the BBC Philharmonic under John Storgårds, was awarded 2026 OPUS KLASSIK ‘Instrumentalist of the Year’. In addition to the 27 violin concertos that he has recorded, Tetzlaff has made numerous recordings of solo violin and duo, with the Tetzlaff quartet and, with the trio that he founded with pianist Lars Vogt. Awards include the Jahrespreis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik, the Midem Classical Award and several Diapason d’or awards.

Chamber music is integral to Tetzlaff’s musical personality. In 1994 he founded the Tetzlaff Quartet with his sister, cellist Tanja Tetzlaff. The ensemble tours each season and performs in 2026/27 in Vienna, Amsterdam and London. Tetzlaff Quartet was awarded a Diapason d’or l'année in 2015 for their recording of Berg’s Lyric Suite and Mendelssohn. Christian and Tanja Tetzlaff also perform regularly as a trio with pianist Kiveli Dörken.

The 2026/2027 season sees Tetzlaff return to the Berlin Philharmonic, Finnish Radio, Lucerne Festival, London Philharmonic, London Symphony, and Montreal Symphony Orchestras. As Artist-in-Residence with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, he appears twice with the Bergen Philharmonic and once with the Bergen Youth Orchestra. Further highlights of the season include national premieres of Ondřej Adámek’s violin concerto No. 2 ‘Thin Ice’ in London, Hamburg and Bergen, and horn trios with Kirill Gerstein and Stefan Dohr in Vienna and Hamburg.

Christian Tetzlaff performs on a violin made by Peter Greiner. He teaches at the Kronberg Academy, and lives in Berlin with his wife, photographer Giorgia Bertazzi, and their three children.

SEASON 2026 / 2027