Dresden-born Michael Güttler studied violin, trumpet, piano and choral conducting at the Carl Maria von Weber College of Music and attended master classes with Leonard Bernstein, Sergiu Celibidache, Miltiades Caridis, Ilya Musin and Valery Gergiev, among others. He was later accepted into the "Dirigentenforum", a support programme established and funded by the German Music Council.
He worked as principal conductor at Stadttheater Klagenfurt from 1998 to 2002, and held further principal conducting positions at the Yekaterinburg Opera House (Russia) and the Finnish National Opera in Helsinki (until 2016). He has been permanent guest conductor at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg since 2003, where he has conducted "Der Ring", "Parsifal" "Tristan und Isolde", "Lohengrin", "Der fliegende Holländer", "Falstaff", "Don Carlo", "Aida", "La Traviata", "Le nozze di Figaro", "Don Giovanni", Ariadne auf Naxos", "Elektra", "Die Frau ohne Schatten", "Il Trittico" and "Lucia di Lammermoor", amongst others. He enjoyed sensational success in May 2007 when he stepped in at short notice at the Bastille in Paris to conduct "Lohengrin".
Known for his remarkable versatility, ranging from Baroque to contemporary repertoire, Güttler regularly works with historical performance practice ensembles such as Concerto Köln and Cappella Coloniensis. Since 2010, he has regularly worked at the Vienna State Opera, conducting productions such as "Rigoletto", "Il barbiere di Siviglia", "La Cenerentola", "Ariadne auf Naxos", "Nabucco", "Werther", "Eugene Onegin", "Boris "Godunov" and "Khovanshchina". He made his La Scala debut in 2023.
Previous engagements in Wiesbaden include "Tristan und Isolde", "Pique Dame", "Nabucco" (International May Festival), as well as a number of symphony concerts. This season he will conduct "Tannhäuser", "Lady Macbeth", Wagner's "Ring" and "Lohengrin".