Les Arts Florissants (ensemble)

Les Arts Florissants performing Henry Purcell's Dido and Aeneas in 2020

Les Arts Florissants is a Baroque musical ensemble in residence at the Théâtre de Caen in Caen, France. The organization was founded by conductor William Christie in 1979. The ensemble derives its name from the 1685 opera Les Arts florissants by Marc-Antoine Charpentier. The organization consists of a chamber orchestra of period instruments and a small vocal ensemble. Current notable members include soprano Danielle de Niese and tenor Paul Agnew, who has served as assistant conductor since 2007. Jonathan Cohen is also on the conducting staff; Christie remains the organization's artistic director.[1][2][3]

  1. ^ Bradley Bambarger (27 March 1999). "Classical Keeping Score". Billboard. p. 18.
  2. ^ Bernard D. Sherman (9 October 2003). Inside Early Music: Conversations with Performers. Oxford University Press. p. 257. ISBN 978-0-19-534365-6.
  3. ^ Maddocks, Fiona (12 May 2019). "Home listening: Les Arts Florissants and the Sixteen hit 40". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 February 2020.