Devotion to music

Christoph Schönfelder was born in Landshut in 1992. He received his comprehensive basic musical training with the Regensburger Domspatzen, and also had organ lessons with the local cathedral organist Prof. Franz-Josef Stoiber. Christoph Schönfelder studied organ, Catholic church music and piano at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Munich with Prof. Harald Feller, Wolfgang Hörlin and Prof. Olaf Dressler, private studies of the 19th and 20th century music took him to Italy to Francesco Finotti.

Christoph Schönfelder has won numerous organ improvisation competitions in Stuttgart, Luxembourg, Bayreuth, Landau and Schlägl, among others. In addition, he was first prize winner in the competition for the music prize of the Kulturkreis Gasteig 2017 in Munich and a scholarship holder at the Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes as an organist as well as at the Förderverein "Freunde Junger Musiker" with piano.

Concert tours have taken him to Austria, Spain, Italy and South Korea, among other places. Christoph Schönfelder also likes to share his preference for contemporary music with his audience and presents works by Oskar Sigmund, Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji and Bruce Mather. His transcription of Rachmaninov's 2nd Piano Concerto for organ was documented by the Bayerischer Rundfunk, and Christoph Schönfelder also performed an arrangement of Franz Liszt's Totentanz (arr. Prof. Harald Feller).

From 2017 to 2023 he has been teaching liturgical organ playing and improvisation at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Munich, first as an assistant lecturer and later as a full-time senior lecturer.

Since August 2023, Christoph Schönfelder has the position of Cathedral Organist at the Cathedral of Sankt Gallen as well as being the Artistic Director of the International Cathedral Organ Concerts Sankt Gallen. He also teaches organ literature and organ improvisation at the Diocesan School of Church Music there and regularly gives advanced courses in improvisation.

Updated: August 2023