With deep sorrow and heavy hearts, the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra informs our colleagues, audiences, and the wide Serbian public of the sudden passing of our beloved Chief Conductor, Gabriel Feltz, on August 29, 2025, at the University Hospital in Essen. His untimely death is an immeasurable loss not only to his Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra, but to Serbian culture as a whole. The Belgrade Philharmonic will present the condolence book on Monday at 10 AM, at the institution’s address at Studentski trg 11.

In just 54 years long life, Gabriel left an indelible mark on the world stage as one of the most distinguished German conductors, with a career that embraced both opera and symphonic repertoire. He served as General Music Director in Altenburg-Gera from 2001 to 2005, Stuttgart Philharmonic from 2004 to 2013. From 2013 until 2024, he led both the Dortmund Opera as a general music director and Dortmund Philharmonic as its chief conductor before taking on the role of Music Director in Kiel in 2024. In 2017, he became Chief Conductor of the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra, an appointment met with joy and excitement by musicians and colleagues alike, who immediately found in him not only a musical leader but also a close friend and tireless companion.

From the very beginning, Gabriel worked with the Belgrade Philharmonic with passion and perseverance, leading the orchestra to new successes, celebrating them only briefly, while already envisioning the next ambitious challenge. At the same time, he stood by the Philharmonic in its most difficult moments, advocating for its future with relentless energy.

As soon as he took on a role of the orchestra’s Chief Conductor, out of respect for his colleagues and Serbian culture, he began learning Serbian language as soon as he arrived in Belgrade, winning the hearts of the public and becoming a favorite of local media, with whom he insisted on speaking in Serbian. He fell in love with Belgrade, its art, and its people. For Gabriel, every concert was a celebration. On stage he transformed into a force of nature, a superhero with radiating energy, joy, and inspiration, while off stage he remained modest, accepting applause with humility after giving everything of himself to the music.

Under his leadership, the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra entered a new era. Gabriel Feltz inscribed his name in the orchestra’s century-long history as one of its most successful and significant chief conductors. With Feltz, the Belgrade Philharmonic has firmly established itself among the orchestras of the highest international caliber. He vastly expanded its repertoire and raised the orchestra’s performance to highest standards of excellence. More than anything, he gave the musicians not only the rigour of “German” discipline, but also the irreplaceable gift of joy and freedom in making music together. He was the spiritus movens of the Belgrade Philharmonic, their steady anchor, and a synonym for trust and reliability. The Philharmonic audience cherished him deeply, showering him with affection in response to his love,
selflessness, and devotion. Many times, Gabriel proudly declared that Belgrade had a world-class orchestra and the best audience in the world.

Gabriel’s vision brought unforgettable milestones: with him, the Belgrade Philharmonic performed its first open-air concerts, brought opera to the concert stage, hosted special musical dialogues, and introduced bold explorations of contemporary music. A true erudite, he was a conductor of enormous breadth and vision, deeply devoted to the works of Beethoven, Brahms, Bruckner, Mahler, Wagner, Strauss, Rachmaninoff, and many others.

He found the ideal partner in the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra to challenge conventions and reach new heights. Together with his musicians, he created marathon performances. As a chief conductor of both orchestras, he brought Dortmund as well as Belgrade Philharmonic together in an epic undertaking of Beethoven Marathon, all nine symphonies in the same day – both in Dortmund and Novi Sad in 2022 – symbolically uniting two orchestras, two cities and two cultures in a powerful message of European unity with legendary Ode to Joy. This was followed by the unforgettable Brahms and Mozart Marathons at Kolarac, however, none of us could have imagined that his triumphant Rachmaninov Marathon in June this year, once again joining the Dortmund and Belgrade Philharmonics, would be the final great achievement of this extraordinary maestro.

Our dearest Gabriel, it will take us a long time to accept that you are gone. Yet what you gave us – new horizons, unshakable confidence, and immeasurable love – will remain with us always, in our music. We will forever carry with us our Bells, our Tosca, our Eroica, Bruckner’s Seventh, every Mahler we ever played together. Though finite, the list is vast and eternal.

Dearest maestro, our dearest friend, the Belgrade Philharmonic salutes you.

Addio, grande Gabriel.

See you at the “afterparty”.