Born in Paris in 1962, Marc Piollet studied at the Hochschule der Künste Berlin and attended masterclasses with Gardiner, Gielen, and Masur. Winner of the 1995 Dirigentenforum, he was Music Director of Volksoper Vienna (2003–2005) and Generalmusikdirektor at Staatstheater Wiesbaden (2004–2012), acclaimed for Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen and new productions. He has conducted at the Royal Theatre Copenhagen, Bayerische Staatsoper, Opéra National de Paris, Teatro Colón, Vienna State Opera, and Gran Teatre del Liceu. He made his US debut with Carmen at Cincinnati Opera in 2014, returning in 2019 for Le nozze di Figaro. Piollet has worked with Deutsche Oper am Rhein and Teatro Real Madrid and regularly collaborates with soloists like Piotr Beczala. Since 2016, he is Professor of Conducting at Kunstuniversität Graz.