Conductor and harpsichordist, William Christie, is the founder of the group Les Arts Florissants and the most important promoter and interpreter of French Baroque music, as well as an eminent performer of the repertoire ranging from 16th- to 18th-century music. He was born in the United States; then, following his studies at Harvard and Yale he left America in 1971 to settle in Paris, where he entered the local Conservatory. As the leader of the group Les Arts Florissants, established in 1979, he has had a profound and personal impact on the reintroduction and exploration of the repertoire which, by then, had been forgotten or had sunk into obscurity, that is, first of all, of virtually all French Baroque music. Thus, he has become an emblematic figure of the resurgence of interest in such genres as tragedielyriqueand opéra-ballet, or the French motet. He has also proposed numerous outstanding creations and recordings of Italian and English works from the same period, from Gesualdo and Monteverdi’s madrigals to operas by Purcell and Handel. tickets

The ensemble, whose name is derived from the title of a short opera by Marc-Antoine Charpentier, was founded in 1979 by the American-born French harpsichordist and conductor William Christie, with the intention to perform Baroque music on period instruments. The group pioneered in rekindling an interest in French Baroque repertoire. For almost forty years, it has participated in reintroducing countless musical treasures from the collections of the National Library of France, especially from the 17th-century French repertoire, or 17th-, and 18th-century European music – to audiences. Starting with the production of Lully’s Atysfor the Opéra-Comique in Paris in 1987, the group has achieved its greatest triumphs in the field of opera. The ensemble has recorded nearly one hundred records for labels such as Harmonia Mundi, Warner Classics/Erato, and Virgin Classics. Their catalogue of DVD opera recordings is equally impressive. tickets

He studied harpsichord at the Schola Cantorum de Paris under the supervision of Huguette Dreyfus, and then at the Koninklijk Conservatorium, with Bob van Asperen. In 1991 he founded a group called Les Talens Lyriques, which enabled him to take the whole repertoire of the Baroque and classicist period in hand. At first, he was noticed as an eminent harpsichordist who recorded a series of particularly highly appreciated albums, but soon he built up his reputation as a conductor, too, leading his ensemble in the most prestigious concert venues all over the world. His complete editions of harpsichord works by Couperin, Rameau, d’Anglebert and Forqueray, as well as his recordings of various pieces by Bach, are considered reference recordings in the musical world. As guest conductor, Rousset appears in numerous theatres including the Liceu in Barcelona, Teatro di San Carlo in Naples, La Scala in Milan, Opéra Royal de Wallonie in Liège, and also performs with the Spanish National Orchestra. At the same time, he is constantly active as an explorer and editor of music. tickets

Vocal and instrumental group founded 27 years ago by Christophe Rousset and counted among the most renowned early music ensembles in France. Their main sphere of interest remains a repertoire of French, and opera, music, ranging from the Baroque to the early Romantic era and comprising both great masterpieces and works which have been slightly marginalised in the history of music. Scores of operas have already been performed by Les Talens Lyriques, beginning with the works of Monteverdi and Cavalli, through Lully, Desmarest, Mondonville, Rameau, Mozart, Salieri, Gluck, up to Beethoven and Cherubini. These productions were realised in collaboration with the most eminent directors. The group also interprets a repertoire of sacred music, as well as chamber, and symphonic, music; on the other hand, it also performs madrigals and airs de cour. The group’s discography comprises dozens of records which have won a number of music critics’ awards. tickets

Organist and harpsichordist, Daucé is also the founder and leader of the Ensemble Correspondances which he conducts while playing his instrument. With his group, established in 2008, following the completion of his studies at the Conservatoire national supérieur de musique et de danse de Lyon, Daucé explores the French repertoire from the period of the ‘Grand Siècle’ (17thcentury), performing nationally and throughout Europe, as well as in Asia and both Americas, and recording albums for the label Harmonia Mundi. At the same time he is engaged in music instruction (he has been teaching at Le Pôle supérieur de Paris since 2012), and in research work. In addition, together with William Christie, he is preparing a publication of three operas by Charpentier for the French music publisher Éditions des Abbesses. He can also boast the title of ‘Associate Artist’ of the Royaumont Foundation. tickets

A group of vocalists and instrumentalists led by harpsichordist and organist Sébastien Daucé which derives its name from Charles Baudelaire’s poetry and combines music with other fine arts as well. The ensemble both performs the works of composers enjoying a well-deserved reputation – Charpentier, for instance – and brings back to life various compositions which –in spite of having been appreciated and frequently performed in the past – have fallen into obscurity and are little known today, such as the works of Antoine Boësset or Etienne Moulinié, emphasising that they still sound quite novel nowadays. The group also recorded several albums – each of which was enthusiastically received by critics – and some of these records won the most prestigious prizes and awards of the phonographic industry. The ensemble performs at the most important festivals in France and other European countries as well as in Japan and is regularly present in the programmes of leading European radio broadcasting corporations. tickets

Founded in 1982 and also called Akamus, the ensemble is now at the forefront of international orchestras playing period instruments. The band is regularly received in the great musical centres of Europe and is very well-known by the audiences of the most important early music festivals in Poland, too, where it has already achieved several spectacular triumphs. For more than twenty years it has collaborated on a regular basis with René Jacobs, which has resulted in numerous oratories and opera productions, enthusiastically received by both critics and audiences. Akamus often performs under the leadership of Marcus Creed, Daniel Reuss, and Hans-Christoph Rademann, and in recent seasons among their conductors there were such personages as Emmanuelle Haïm, Bernarda Labadie, Paula Agnew, and Rinaldo Alessandrini. The list of Akamus’ collaborators also includes renowned soloists, such as Cecilia Bartoli, Andreas Scholl, Sandrine Piau, Isabelle Faust, Andreas Staier, Alexander Melnikov, and Anna Prohaska. The group’s recordings, which have already won all the most prestigious awards, have so far been sold in over one million copies, a testimony to the orchestra’s international success. tickets

The group was founded in 2008, when several singers with considerable experience in the repertoire of madrigals resolved to launch such a project on their own account, that is, without a conductor. Their self-dependent debut album – anthology of madrigals with lyrics derived from Ariosto’s Orlando Furioso, edited by the label Arcana – came out in 2011. Two years later the ensemble initiated a collaboration with the Glossa recording company, issuing madrigals and responsories by Gesualdo, Marenzio, Monteverdi, and many others, their successive albums winning a number of the most important international awards of the phonographic industry. The group regularly performs at the most prestigious festivals including MITO SettembreMusica, Unione Musicale in Turin, Schwetzingen Festival, RheinVokal, as well as in the most famous concert halls such as the Cologne Philharmonic, Victoria Hall in Geneva, Musée d’Orsay in Paris, the Sala Accademica of the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music in Rome, and Wigmore Hall in London. tickets

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Belgian soprano particularly appreciated for her interpretations of Mozart’s works. She made her debut with the part of Pamina in his The Magic Flute under the leadership of René Jacobs at the La Monnaie in Brussels and international reviewers have followed her artistic activities with special attention ever since. She has already performed with such eminent conductors as William Christie, Jérémie Rhorer, Christophe Rousset, John Eliot Gardiner, and Emmanuelle Haïm. She is also a highly successful recitalist who regularly wins prizes and awards in that field. As a soloist, she performs with renowned ensembles and orchestras. She is also familiar with the repertoire of early music, including Telemann’s cantatas. In addition, it should be emphasised that the album comprising Leçons de ténèbres by Delalande (issued by Harmonia Mundi in 2015), and recorded by Karthäuser with the Ensemble Correspondances and Sébastienem Daucé, was awarded the prestigious Diapason d’Or. tickets

Danish soprano who made her debut in the field of opera with the title role in Offenbach’s La Péricholeand has roused the admiration of the audiences of venues such as Wigmore Hall, Théâtre Municipal de la Ville de Luxembourg, Teatro Real in Madrid, and Concertgebouw, and of such music world events as the Wiener Festwochen and Aix-en-Provence Festival ever since. Although the repertoire of her performances ranges from the times of Monteverdi to those of Britten, Van Wanroij specializes in French Baroque music, which she has already interpreted in collaboration with William Christie, René Jacobs, Christoph Rousset, Raphaël Pichon, and Hervé Niquet. Her discography is marked by considerable diversity: she has so far issued recordings of music by Bach, Purcell, Lully, Rameau, Mendelssohn, Mahler, and Gounod. tickets

Belgian soprano and graduate of the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, Cachet is currently perfecting her singing skills under the supervision of Rosemary Joshua. She is the winner of several prestigious singing competitions, too. Her latest engagements include performances of works by Britten, Rameau, Lully, Purcell, Mozart, and Handel. She has already sung both at the most famous music festivals and in the most important opera houses. The artist can also boast her collaboration with the most eminent early music ensembles including Ensemble Correspondances, Le Poème Harmonique, and Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin. Cachet has also performed under the leadership of René Jacobs, Paul Agnew, and Sébastien Daucé. Moreover, together with Raphaël Pichon and his Ensemble Pygmalion, she recorded an album entitled Stravaganza d’Amore, issued by the Harmonia Mundi label. tickets

British soprano and graduate of Trinity College, Cambridge, Katherine Watson was also a singer in William Christie and Paul Agnew’s Le Jardin des Voix. She is the winner of numerous prizes and awards in singing competitions. She regularly performs with William Christie and Les Arts Florissants, Emmanuelle Haïm and Le Concert d’Astrée, Hervé Niquet and Le Concert Spirituel, Stephen Layton and Polyphony, Harry Christophers and The Sixteen, Raphaël Pichon and Ensemble Pygmalion or Christophe Rousset and Les Talens Lyriques. She has also sung at the most prestigious European opera theatres, performing compositions of the greatest masters. A special place in her concert repertoire is occupied by her interpretations of oratorios by Handel and Bach. Demonstrating her versatility and unique talent, Watson also performs more recent works by Mahler, Lutosławski, Barber, Britten, and others. tickets

French contralto and mezzo-soprano singer. Although Richardot used to sing in a children’s choir already at the age of eleven, she first turned towards a career as a professional musician a dozen or so years later, quitting journalism. She was educated in early music at, among others, the Conservatoire à rayonnement regional de Paris. She specialises both in historically informed performance and contemporary music and has collaborated with the Ensemble Pygmalion (Raphaël Pichon) and Le Poème Harmonique (Vincent Dumestre) as well as with the Ensemble Intercontemporain and Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. She has toured Europe and North America together with the Monteverdi Choir & Orchestras conducted by John Eliot Gardiner. In 2018 Richardot made her debut at the Aix-en-Provence Festival and, as a soloist, on a recording by the Ensemble Correspondances under the leadership of Sébastien Daucé. tickets

Belgian tenor and graduate of the Koninklijk Conservatorium Brussel, Van Mechelen attracted considerable attention of international audiences in 2007 by taking part in the Ambronay European Baroque Academy under the leadership of Hervé Niquet. In 2011 he was a member of William Christie and Paul Agnew‘s Le Jardin des Voix, which then bore fruit in the form of regular collaboration with Les Arts Florissants, with whom he performed at the most prestigious European concert venues. He has also worked with eminent early music ensembles including La Petite Bande, Les Talens Lyriques, Ensemble Pygmalion, Le Poème Harmonique, and L’Arpeggiata. Very active both in the field of opera and on the concert music scene, Van Mechelen eagerly engages himself in performing Bach’s oeuvre: he first signalised himself with the role of the Evangelist in St. John Passion, while his first solo album entitled Erbarme Dich and devoted to Bach’s arias, received favourable reviews and won acclaim from international critics. tickets

Gregory drew to himself the attention of international reviewers with his interpretations of Mozartian characters and performances of Baroque repertoire. Thanks to the Harewood Artists Programme intended to support the most outstanding talents, he was able to collaborate with the English National Opera. With his voice and personality he roused the audiences’ admiration at venues such as the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet, Teatro Real in Madrid, and Royal Opera House, and at the Glyndebourne, Aix-en-Provence, and London Handel festivals. He has also performed on the concert music scene with renowned ensembles or under the leadership of most eminent conductors. During the 2018/2019 season he is taking part in William Christie’s Les Arts Florissants European tour dedicated to St. John Passionby Johann Sebastian Bach, and in a series of concerts with the BBC Symphony Orchestra. British reviewers acclaimed Gregory ‘a budding opera star’. tickets

Italian bass-baritone who simultaneously studied singing at the Accademia Teatro alla Scala and Municipal School of Music Claudio Abbado in Milan and musicology at the University of Pavia, Dolcini is the winner of numerous prizes and awards. He specialises in the Baroque, and classicist, vocal art. In 2015 he was invited to collaborate with William Christie. Under his leadership, together with Les Arts Florissants, he performed in Europe, North America, Australia, and Asia, attracting the attention of international audiences and reviewers alike. In addition, he has collaborated with such leading conductors of early music as John Eliot Gardiner, René Jacobs, Fabio Biondi, Stefano Montanari, and Raphaël Pichon. During the previous season he interpreted characters from Mozart and Rossi in the opera houses of France and Italy, and also performed works by Cavalli (at the Glyndebourne Festival) and by Purcell – during a tour with Les Arts Florissants. tickets

American opera and concert singer born in California, Rosen had successfully developed his career both in the United States and abroad. He has already performed with the best American ensembles and orchestras, including the Houston Symphony Orchestra and Portland Baroque Orchestra, and collaborated with the Cincinnati Opera, Opera Lafayette, and Opera Philadelphia. His credits include interpretations of works by Haydn, Beethoven, Mozart, and Janáček. The artist also feels comfortable with the repertoire of early music. He has already performed pieces by Rameau and Monteverdi and collaborates with William Christie and Les Arts Florissants. Under the leadership of this renowned master of historically informed performance, he has sung in Monteverdi’s L'incoronazione di Poppea, Handel’s Acis and Galatea and Radamisto, and, more recently, in performances of Bach’s St. John Passion. tickets