“„It is the most entertaining and exciting thing done with Schubert in a long time.“”
The Erlkings - Our Audience
For a year I refused to hear them. What trendy band was this, and how dare they traduce the greatest songwriter of them all? Pop arrangements in ENGLISH. Ugh! One day I saw that they were to perform at one of my favourite venues: Wilton’s Music Hall. I went on line to discover more – and heard and saw a performance of ‘Auf dem Wasser zu singen’ that blew me and all my prejudices away.
Not only are THE ERLKINGS paving the way for a new generation of Schubert fans (there were more young faces in the audience than I’ve seen at any other concert hall), they are also offering a new perspective on a repertoire already prized by so many. Every arrangement and translation demonstrates a true love and respect for Schubert as well as a willingness to break from convention and discover new facets of these wonderful songs. As a life-long student of Schubert’s Lieder, I consider THE ERLKINGS to be a most precious addition to his legacy.
Richard Stokes - Professor of Lieder at the Royal Academy of Music, London
“...the evening puts you in a great mood — and yet opens up the abyss of romantic irony.”
The Erlkings - The Pitch
For over ten years, the Vienna-based quartet The Erlkings has been delighting audiences all across Europe. With their fresh ideas, courage, and incomparable live performances, they breathe new life into the art song and the performance of classical music. In doing so, they make this music accessible to a wide audience and demonstrate just how timeless and touching the this music remains to this day.
This has earned them regular appearances on many of Europe’s most respected song stages, including the Schubertiade in Schwarzenberg/Hohenems, Wigmore Hall in London, the Heinrich Heine House in Paris, Konzerthaus Berlin and the Wiener Konzerthaus to name a few. Their six studio albums and one live album include Lieder by Franz Schubert, Robert Schumann, Ludwig van Beethoven, Joseph Haydn, and Johannes Brahms, all of which have been met with critical acclaim. In 2025, the ensemble premiered its arrangement of Schubert’s “Winterreise” at the Schubertiade in Hohenems, and in the same year served as Ensemble in Residence at the prestigious Oxford International Song Festival.
The Erlkings prove that these 200-year-old songs are more alive than ever – full of vitality, charm, lightness, and meaning. Excitement and joy are guaranteed. Schubert at his absolute finest.
For a more detailed information watch our 13-min film on YouTube.
The Musicians
Bryan Benner
Baritone/Guitar
American-born troubadour Bryan Benner has lived and worked in Europe since 2006 as an opera singer, folk singer, guitarist, and composer. Since 2011 he has made his home in Vienna, Austria, where he has become an important fixture in the city's musical life. Bryan is the founder, translator, singer, and guitarist of The Erlkings. He is also a celebrated songwriter and lyricist. His musical influences range from American country music to Viennese art song.
Ivan Turkalj
Violoncello
Croatian-born cellist Ivan Turkalj moves with dedication between Baroque and Classical music, Jazz, and interdisciplinary programs that span the entire musical spectrum. He has long embodied the much‑sought “reinvention” of classical music. “An exemplary model of an artist in the independent scene who combines creative musical work with social responsibility,” declared the jury of the Bavarian Arts Promotion Prize, awarded in 2022. Since 2026 he has taught his own cello class at the Bruckner University in Linz.
Simon Teurezbacher
Tuba
Austrian-born tuba player Simon Teurezbacher moves from cosy pub folk nights and jazz clubs to the big orchestral stage. Versatile and at ease in every setting, he is equally at home in brass bands, folk ensembles, pop, jazz and contemporary music. This stylistic flexibility makes him a sought-after ensemble partner and a frequent substitute in Vienna’s major orchestras. In addition to his performing projects, he teaches brass and ensemble performance.
Thomas Toppler
Percussion/Vibraphone
Austria-born Thomas Toppler enjoys a diverse and multifaceted career as a musician, actor and director. As a musician, Thomas has collaborated with numerous high-profile orchestras in concerts and on world tours. As a director, writer and actor, he won the Austrian Nestroy Theatre Prize 2022 in the category “Best Off-Production” for his bouffon theatre piece Ein bescheidenerer Vorschlag. Since 2023, Thomas has held a teaching position at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna (mdw) in Stage Presence, and he teaches Bouffon at the Max Reinhardt Seminar.
Press reviews
“The Erlkings brought a brilliant Crossover- Show to the Meisterkonzert series. One rarely hears Schubert’s ‘Die schöne Müllerin’ performed with such creativity and competence. Schubert with addictive potential!”
— Mainpost
“The care with which these musicians play elicits such an intimacy and closeness to the original, that even someone who has never heard a song by Schubert finds themselves in a state of fascination.”
— Frank Siebert, SHMF
“A full-frontal approach to Schubert. They endeavor to unfreeze art song from it’s long, frozen sleep.”
— Deutschland Radio
“As a life-long student of Schubert’s Lieder, I consider the Erlkings to be a most precious addition to his legacy”
— Richard Stokes, Professor of Lieder at the Royal Academy of Music, London
“In conclusion: Rather than a storm of puritanical indignation at their new arrangements of Schubert Lieder, The Erlkings received a wave of uproarious applause.”
— Vorarlberger Nachrichten
“The Erlkings have taken Schubert’s songs out of the Biedermeier-parlor and into the beer-garden.”