"Tetzlaff delves further and further into the music, spans the very great Dvořák arc and thrills in a brilliant finale with so much violinistic superpower that one would like to propose him, Dvořák too of course, as the title character for one of those Hollywood blockbusters" (Der Tagesspiegel, October 2021).

Christian Tetzlaff is one of the most sought-after violinists and most exciting musicians on today's classical music scene, known for bringing fresh perspectives on old familiar works, and shedding new light on forgotten masterpieces.

To broaden his repertoire, he also commits himself to substantial new works, such as Jörg Widmann's Violin Concerto, which he premiered in 2013. With devotion, he cultivates an unusually extensive repertoire and performs approximately 100 concerts every year.

For the 2023/24 season, Christian Tetzlaff is performing with some of the world's top orchestras, including the BBC Symphony Orchestra at the 2024 Proms, the Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Orchestre de chambre de Paris, Orchestre National de France, the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, and Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra.

Over the course of his career, Christian Tetzlaff has made guest appearances with many great orchestras, including the Vienna Philharmonic and New York Philharmonic, the Concertgebou in Amsterdam, and all the London orchestras.

He has worked with legendary Maestri such as Sergiu Celibidache, Bernard Haitink, Lorin Maazel, Kurt Masur, and Christoph von Dohnányi. Close artistic ties have also been forged with Karina Canellakis, Daniel Harding, Paavo Järvi, Vladimir Jurowski, Andris Nelsons, Sir Simon Rattle, Francois Xavier Roth, Robin Ticciati, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Michael Tilson Thomas, Barbara Hannigan, Ed Gardner, Ingo Metzmacher, and Kent Nagano.

In 1994, he founded the Tetzlaff Quartet with his sister, the cellist Tanja Tetzlaff. The quartet tours extensively, and was awarded the Diapason d'Or in 2015. His trio with Tanja and pianist Lars Vogt was nominated for a GRAMMY award in 2016.

Christian Tetzlaff has also received numerous recording awards, including the Jahrespreis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik and the Diapason d'Or in 2018, as well as the Midem Classical Award in 2017. His interpretations of Bach's Sonatas and Partitas are highly acclaimed.

Known for 'speaking' through his violin, Tetzlaff's playing, like human speech, comprises a wide range of expressive means, and is not aimed solely at achieving harmoniousness or virtuosic brilliance. Tetzlaff tries to fulfil the musical text as deeply as possible, conveying the composer's often dramatic stories of life, death, and love in the music – without indulging in the usual technical short-cuts on the violin – allowing a renewed clarity and richness to arise in well-known works.