The Early Opera Company is a British ensemble dedicated to the performance of

baroque opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a ...

s using

period instruments In the historically informed performance movement, musicians perform classical music using restored or replicated versions of the instruments for which it was originally written. Often performances by such musicians are said to be "on authentic ...

. It was founded in 1994 by Christian Curnyn. Handel's operas feature prominently in its repertoire, and the Company has given notable performances of '' Acis and Galatea'', ''

Dido and Aeneas ''Dido and Aeneas'' (Z. 626) is an opera in a prologue and three acts, written by the English Baroque composer Henry Purcell with a libretto by Nahum Tate. The dates of the composition and first performance of the opera are uncertain. It was com ...

'', '' Agrippina'' in New York, ''

Orlando Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures re ...

'' at the

South Bank Centre Southbank Centre is a complex of artistic venues in London, England, on the South Bank of the River Thames (between Hungerford Bridge and Waterloo Bridge). It comprises three main performance venues (the Royal Festival Hall including the Nat ...

Early Music Festival and ''

Partenope ''Partenope'' ("Parthenope", HWV 27) is an opera by George Frideric Handel, first performed at the King's Theatre in London on 24 February 1730. Although following the structure and forms of opera seria, the work is humorous in character and li ...

'' at the Linbury Studio Theatre. They have also recorded ''Partenope'' and ''

Semele Semele (; Ancient Greek: Σεμέλη ), in Greek mythology, was the youngest daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia, and the mother of Dionysus by Zeus in one of his many origin myths. Certain elements of the cult of Dionysus and Semele came from ...

'' for the Chaconne label on Chandos Records. The recording of ''Semele'' was awarded the Handel Prize in 2008. Soloists who have performed with the company include

Joshua Bell Joshua David Bell (born December 9, 1967) is an American violinist and conductor. He plays the Gibson Stradivarius. Early life and education Bell was born in Bloomington, Indiana, to Shirley Bell, a therapist, and Alan P. Bell, a psychologi ...

, Sam Haywood and

Jonathan Biss Jonathan Biss (born September 18, 1980) is an American pianist, teacher, and writer based in Philadelphia. He is the co-artistic director (with Mitsuko Uchida) of the Marlboro Music Festival. Early life and education Biss was born into a fam ...

. They performed at the Lufthansa Baroque Music Festival in May 2009 with John Eccles's '' The Judgment of Paris'' in one its first ever performances. The ensemble also made the premiere recording of the work for Chandos Records.

References

External links

* British opera companies Mixed early music groups Musical groups established in 1994 Arts organizations established in 1994 1994 establishments in the United Kingdom {{Opera-company-stub