Created in 2000 by Emmanuelle Haïm, Le Concert d'Astrée is a French jewel in Baroque music in Europe and worldwide. The instrumental ensemble is as much known for the quality of its productions as for its open-mindedness.
It met with almost immediate success in France, where it received a Victoire de la Musique Classique award in 2003, and worldwide, where its extremely varied repertoire, from Handel to Bach, via Monteverdi and Rameau, earned it invitations to the most important venues. Le Concert d'Astrée has performed on all the major stages from Paris to New York, from Vienna to Berlin, and naturally in Salzburg.
The ensemble quickly established itself as the recording partner of great voices such as Natalie Dessay, Philippe Jaroussky, Rolando Villazón, Sandrine Piau and, more recently, of Sabine Devieilhe, Jakub Jozef Orlinski and Lea Desandre. These recordings for the Erato Warner Classics label were enthusiastically received by critics and audiences alike. Among the latest DVD releases: Rameau's “Les Boréades”, directed by Barrie Kosky at the Dijon Opera (2021) and Handel's “Il trionfo del tempo e del disinganno”, recorded at the Aix-en-Provence International Festival of Lyric Art (2017). The “Italian cantatas” disc devoted to Handel won numerous awards: Gramophone Record of the Month, Choc de Classica album, RTL Classic d'Or.
Le Concert d'Astrée took up residence at the Opéra de Lille in 2004. This anchor has enabled it to pursue another of its ambitions: the permanent search for a new audience. Emmanuelle Haïm and her musicians have become accustomed to organising improvised concerts in surprising places, including Gare Saint Sauveur in Lille, as well as in nursery schools, prisons and many other places to reach all those who are intimidated by the usual venues.