Katharina Arfken, born in Northern Germany, has specialized in playing historical double-reed instruments. Her main interest is the oboe of the 18th century.
After working as an instrument maker she studied baroque and classical oboe as well as renaissance double-reed instruments at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, Switzerland, with Michel Piguet and at the Royal Conservatory of Music, The Hague, with Ku Ebbinge.
Katharina Arfken has performed with leading ensembles, and taken part in numerous recordings, f.ex. with Freiburger Barockorchester, The English Baroque Soloists (John Elliott Gardiner), Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin and the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra (Ton Koopman). Concert tours have led her to Europe, Asia, Australia and North- and South America.
The former solo oboist of the Freiburger Barockorchester now puts her focus more on soloistic projects and chamber music. She is oboist of the Ensemble of the Bachstiftung St. Gallen/Switzerland. Under the baton of Rudolf Lutz this ensemble is performing and recording all cantatas by J.S.Bach on CD and DVD. She also went on concert tours to the US and Latin America with the International Bachakademie Stuttgart (Hans-Christoph Rademann).
As al soloist Katharina Arfken has recorded the concerto by Franz Xaver Richter for the first time with the ensemble Alta Ripa (Dahbringhaus und Grimm). Her latest recordings include the Mozart oboe concerto with the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra and the concerto for oboe d’amore by J.S.Bach (harmonia mundi, France). She has also recorded all triosonatas by Johann Friedrich Fasch (harmonia mundi).
Katharina Arfken was professor for baroque and classical oboe from 1997-2025 at the Basel Academy of Music, Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, Switzerland, regularly gives summer courses and is still responsible for the Quality Managemant in Teaching at the Schola Cantorum and representation of empoyees as co-president MOM. She lives in Rheinfelden near Bale in Switzerland with her family.
Katharina Arfken has retired as professor for oboe at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in the summer of 2025. Her successor is Antoine Torunczyk.