Matthias Glander studied at the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin from 1976-1981 under Hans Radünz, and then went on to study with professors Ewald Koch and Oskar Michallik. He began working at the Staatskapelle Berlin of the Deutsche Staatsoper Berlin in 1983, where he has been solo clarinetist since 1985. 

Glander is a regular guest at the Berliner Philharmoniker and the Bayreuther Festspielorchester, where he performs under conductors such as Claudio Abbado, Daniel Barenboim, Pierre Boulez, David Foster, Carlo Maria Giulini, James Levine, Sir Simon Rattle, Kurt Sanderling, Giuseppe Sinopoli and Günter Wand.

He is active in numerous solo and chamber music endeavors with different renowned orchestras and chamber ensembles and has played concerts with Daniel Barenboim and Yo-Yo Ma in Berlin, Weimar and Paris. Glander is a regular guest at international music festivals, such as the Jerusalem International Chamber Music Festival, the Staatsopernfesttagen with Elena Bashkirowa, the Brothers Capucon, Boris Pergamenschikow, Dmitri Sitkowetski, LangLang, Nikolai Znayder or Yefim Bronfman. His solo concerts have been performed under the direction of Daniel Barenboim, Hartmut Haenchen, Siegfried Kurz, Sir Jehudi Menuhin, Otmar Suitner and Sebastian Weigle.

Glander has been teaching at the Orchesterakademie of the Staatskapelle Berlin since 1997. He has also been working with the winds of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, founded by Daniel Barenboim and Edward Said, since 1999. He taught as a Professor at the Academia de Estudios Orchestrale in Sevilla from 2004-2013. Glander currently teaches clarinet and chamber music at the Barenboim-Said Akademie.

Since graduating from their respective academies, Glander’ students have received soloist positions at top European orchestras, including the Bavarian State Opera, the Berlin State Opera, the Konzerthausorchester Berlin, the Niedersächsisches Staatstheater Hannover, the Teatro Real Madrid and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra.

He is co-founder of the Kammerharmonie of the Lindenoper, the wind soloists of the Staatskapelle Berlin as well as the Trio Apollon, with which he was part of the Warner Classics production “Wasserspiele??? and for which he received an Echo Klassik Prize.

He continues to frequent the world’s largest music centers including London, Vienna, Paris, Madrid, Rome, Milan, Tokyo, New York, Italy, Spain and across South America.