Born in Hachenburg, Germany, he studied at the Freiburg University of Music and became Chief solo viola of the Berlin Philharmonic at the age of 22. Since then, he has performed as a soloist with many famous orchestras and conductors, including the Berlin Philharmonic under Claudio Abbado. As a chamber musician, he has performed at international music festivals and recorded with such distinguished artists as Martha Argerich, Jessye Norman, Daniel Barenboim, and James Levine. In 1999, he left the Berlin Philharmonic to begin his career as a conductor.
While continuing to serve as Chief viola of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, she has also been active in the field of conducting, where she has been highly praised for her lively and detailed interpretations of music.
As a guest conductor, he has conducted the Munich Chamber Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Royal Danish Orchestra, Simon Bolivar Orchestra, and Deutsche Radio Philharmonic Orchestra Saarbrücken, among others. From 2004 to 2008, he served as Chief Conductor of the Mannheim Chamber Orchestra. He also built a long-standing relationship with the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra, and from 2009 to 2013, he served as the orchestra's Principal Guest Conductor at the Holstein Music Festival and the Lucerne Music Festival, where he was a popular guest conductor.
In 2014, he released a CD with Henssler Classics, his recording of Bach's Hamburg Symphony with the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra and CPE, which has received international acclaim and is considered the best performance recording of the work.
In 2018 he conducted the English Chamber Orchestra at the Lucerne Festival to great acclaim.