In 1875, the Munich Opera Festival took place for the first time. Sir Peter Jonas became the general manager in 1993,[5] the first British general manager of any major German-speaking opera house. In 2008, Nikolaus Bachler became Intendant (general manager) of the opera company, and Kirill Petrenko became Generalmusikdirektor (GMD) in 2013. In 2014, the Bavarian State Opera received the Opernhaus des Jahres (opera house of the year) award from Opernwelt magazine.[6] In October 2015, the company announced the extensions of the contracts of Bachler and of Petrenko through August 2021.[7][8] Both Bachler and Petrenko stood down from their respective posts at the close of the 2020–2021 season.[9]
In March 2018, the company announced the appointments of Serge Dorny [de] as its next general manager, and of Vladimir Jurowski as its next GMD, both effective with the 2021–2022 season.[10] In June 2024, the company announced the extension of Dorny's contract as Intendant through 2031, and of Jurowski's contract as GMD through the close of the 2027-2028 season, at which time Jurowski is expected to stand down as GMD.[11]
Bavarian State Opera has issued numerous recordings under record labels such as Deutsche Grammophon. In May 2021, it launched its own recording label, Bayerische Staatsoper Recordings (BSOrec).[14]
At International Opera Awards, the Bayerische Staatsoper won the 2018 the Opera Company Award.[17] Their recording of Handel's Agrippina, directed by Barrie Kosky from the Royal Opera House, has been shortlisted for the 2018 Opera Awards.
[18]
In 1977, a recording by the Bavarian State Opera was selected by NASA to be included on the Voyager Golden Record, a gold-plated copper record that was sent into space on the Voyager space craft. The record contained sounds and images which had been selected as examples of the diversity of life and culture on Earth. In the recording, soprano Edda Moser sings "Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen" from Mozart's opera, The Magic Flute, conducted by Sawallisch.[19][20][21]