The founder of the Ensemble Les Talens Lyriques and internationally renowned harpsichordist, Christophe Rousset, is an inspired musician and conductor with a passion for opera and the rediscovery of the European musical heritage.
Christophe Rousset studied the harpsichord with Huguette Dreyfus at the Schola Cantorum in Paris, then with Bob van Asperen at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague. He has also won the coveted First Prize in the Seventh Bruges International Harpsichord Competition at the age of twenty-two. He then followed up by creating his very own ensemble, Les Talens Lyriques, in 1991. All of these experiences have enabled Christophe Rousset to obtain a perfect grasp of the richness and diversity of the Baroque, Classical and pre-Romantic repertoires.
Christophe Rousset is regularly invited to perform with Les Talens Lyriques all over Europe (Opéra National de Paris, Opéra-Comique, Opéra National des Pays-Bas, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Paris Philharmonic, Lausanne Opera, Teatro Real de Madrid, Theater an der Wien, Staatsoper in Vienna, Versailles’s Opéra Royal, La Monnaie de Bruxelles, Wigmore Hall, Barbican Centre, Bozar, and many more), as well as on tour in other parts of the world (Mexico, New Zealand, Canada, United States, etc.).
Concurrently, he continues to pursue an active solo career as a harpsichordist and chamber musician, playing and recording on some of the world’s finest period instruments. His recordings on the harpsichord of pieces by Louis and François Couperin, Rameau, D’Anglebert, Royer, Duphly, Forqueray, Balbastre and Scarlatti, and those devoted to Johann Sebastian Bach (Partitas, Goldberg Variations, Harpsichord Concertos, English Suites, French Suites, Klavierbüchlein für Wilhelm Friedemann, Well-Tempered Clavier) are considered as essential references.
Christophe Rousset also appears regularly as a guest conductor at venues and with ensembles such as Liceu Barcelona, San Carlo Naples, La Scala Milan, Opéra Royal de Wallonie, London’s Royal Opera House, Orquesta Nacional de España, Hong Kong Philharmonic, Orchestre du Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment.
Latest publications by Aparté include Le manuscrit de Madame Théobon, Pièces de Viole with Atsushi Sakai and Marion Martineau and The Sphere of Intimacy with Cyrille Dubois.
Christophe Rousset has been decorated with the awards of Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur and Ordre National du Mérite. Moreover, he was named Commandeur des Arts et les Lettres, the highest distinction of this French order for Outstanding Achievement in Music.
