LINOCLN CENTER ORCHESTRA WITH WYNTON MARSALIS/Cool School & Hard Bop
Jan 5, 2025APAP Update Keynote
Jan 6, 2025
Carnegie Hall
Jan. 8 and April 26
| The renowned Baroque Music ensemble Les Arts Florissants (LAF) presents a special anniversary season in 2024-2025 that celebrates the 80th birthday of its Co-musical Director and Founder William Christie, featuring two exciting concerts at Carnegie Hall on January 28 and April 6, and a 21-city North American tour marking the 300th anniversary of Antonio Vivaldi’s beloved Four Seasons. The tour is led and performed by young virtuoso violinist Théotime Langlois de Swarte, a dedicated LAF member, and travels to 11 different states plus Canada from March 14 to April 11, 2025. Vivaldi’s Four Seasons at 300The spring 2025 tour marks the first time since 2001 that Les Arts Florissants travels coast to coast in America, and visits so many cities. Also of note, it is the first time that a LAF tour is led by a musician from the new generation of performers trained with the Ensemble. The tour program, performed by 15 musicians, complements Vivaldi’s Four Seasons by including works of Monteverdi, Uccellini, and Geminiani, Baroque composers who influenced Vivaldi’s approach, and those he in turn inspired. Published in 1725, Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons is one of the most popular works of all time and played an essential role in the composer’s fame. Théotime Langlois de Swarte stated, “For one of the best-known composers in Western music, it is astonishing there are still so many facets to explore.” A short video presentation of the program by the violinist can be viewed here. Carnegie Hall concerts and William Christie’s 80th birthday celebrationsThe anniversary season also spans a number of international events, including two performances at Carnegie Hall—the first one in Zankel Hall, a celebratory program conducted by William Christie with guest vocalists (January 28); and the second in Weill Recital Hall, part of the tour program led by Théotime Langlois de Swarte (April 6). As part of the international celebrations, a concert showcasing some of Christie’s iconic works will be performed at the Philharmonie de Paris with the LAF Choir and Orchestra (December 14, 2024); and the presentation of Canadian director Robert Carsen’s production of Rameau’s opera Les Fêtes d’Hébé at the Opéra-Comique with William Christie as musical director (Paris, December 13 -21, 2024); in addition to performances of the special program “Happy Birthday Bill” in Spain, England, Malta, and Hungary. William Christie, harpsichordist, conductor, musicologist, teacher, and founder of Les Arts Florissants, has become a pioneer in the rediscovery of the Baroque repertoire. His legendary contributions to the French and international cultural landscape, and his mission to combine music, heritage preservation, and performance have made him an incomparable worldwide innovator. In the words of Opera News, “Les Arts Florissants has revolutionized the way Baroque music is presented.” |
| January 28, 2025, at 7:30 PM, Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Hall Center StageLes Arts FlorissantsWilliam Christie, artistic director and conductorAna Vieira Leite, sopranoJuliette Mey, mezzo-sopranoRebecca Leggett, mezzo-sopranoBastien Rimondi, tenorMatthieu Walendzik, baritoneWorks by Charpentier, Lully, and Rameau: Click here for the detailed program.In this special 80th-birthday concert, Christie conducts some of his favorite works by 17th and 18th-century French Baroque composers he has championed throughout his career—Charpentier, Lully, and Rameau. The guest soloists are all laureates of Le Jardin des Voix, the vocal academy for young singers he created in 2002. This performance will be heard live by listeners around the world as part of the Carnegie Hall Live broadcast and digital series. Produced by WQXR and Carnegie Hall, and co-hosted by WQXR’s Jeff Spurgeon and WNYC’s John Schaefer, the concert will be broadcast on WQXR 105.9 FM in New York and streamed online at wqxr.org and carnegiehall.org/wqxr. Tickets are limited. C. Ipiotis |
