Benjamin Britten’s (1913-1976) extraordinary piece The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra has been a favourite of education schemes and family orchestral concerts for years.
Britten pinched one of Henry Purcell’s (1659-1695) themes and used it to explore the sections of the huge modern symphony orchestra in an imaginative series of variations.
The English Concert is pleased to announce the appointment of Alfonso Leal del Ojo as its Chief Executive.
With just hours to go, the Big Give Christmas Challenge 2018 goes live at midday tomorrow (27th November). Past appeals have always featured exciting new enterprises such as our staged Messiah or collaboration with New English Ballet Theatre and this year we are equally ambitious as we seek to raise £40,000 towards our new creation Dido & Aeneas: The Untold …
The English Concert have thrilled audiences across the world ever since our foundation in 1973. In four and a half decades we have been proud to field an ever-evolving, but close-knit, ensemble formed of the best international talent. On the eve of our 45th Anniversary Season which begins at Queen Elizabeth Hall on 11th October under principal guest director Kristian …
Gijs Elsen, has announced his intention to leave his position as Chief Executive of The English Concert by 1st January 2019. Since Gijs joined in 2011, the orchestra has seen a period of unprecedented growth both artistically and commercially. Elsen and Artistic Director Harry Bicket built a series of ground breaking, high-profile cross-artform collaborations and a flagship annual Handel opera …
On the eve of its 45th Anniversary Season, The English Concert are delighted to announce an exciting new partnership with Garsington Opera. Beginning in 2020, The English Concert will perform in one or two productions each season for an initial 5 year term. In that same period, Garsington Opera (who celebrate their 30th Anniversary Season in 2019) will also extend …
The English Concert Returns to the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse Ahead of our 2018-2019 season, we are delighted to announce our return to the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse at Shakespeare’s Globe on 8th July. In recent years, we’ve been involved in a number of projects at the Globe, from retracing Charles Burney’s footsteps through the musical landscape of the 17th and 18th centuries …
Just over a month on from our latest Handel blockbuster, and we’re still trying to catch our breath, such has been the critical acclaim that greeted us upon our return to the UK.
Harry Bicket is well known to opera goers for his stylish, revelatory interpretations of Baroque operas, persuading modern orchestra to take a historically informed approach to their playing. This year, as music director of Sante Fe Opera, he branches out into Bernstein, bringing his broader musical horizons into focus. Heidi Waleson met the Anglo-American conductor in New York during the …