Ensemble Molière
“Pygmalion has to be one of the most exciting projects out on the early music scene today. It is historically informed and wonderfully performed by a cast of stunning young singers and players.
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“Ensemble Molière brought us rather overlooked and sometimes neglected music from the French baroque and presented it with an artistic flair that added real texture to the enjoyment of the music...an excellent concert.”
Ensemble Molière
Ensemble Molière have gained a reputation as an established early music ensemble. Their unique line-up of instruments provides memorable and creative programmes from the repertoire of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, all inspired by the music of the French Baroque.
Ensemble Molière were selected as the first ever BBC Radio 3 New Generation Baroque Ensemble for two years from October 2021, in partnership with BBC Radio 3, the National Centre for Early Music and the Royal College of Music. They have performed throughout the UK and Europe, including concerts at the Buxton International Festival, Beverley Early Music Festival, Lammermuir Festival, MA Festival Fringe in Bruges and Festival Oude Muziek Fringe in Utrecht. The group made their debut at the London Festival of Baroque Music under the 'Future Artists' scheme, and are also former members of the BREMF Live! programme. In 2017, they reached the finals of the York Early Music International Young Artists Competition.
Ensemble Molière's first cross-arts project, Pygmalion, was part-funded by Arts Council England and featured an innovative combination of opera and digital media. More recently, the group joined forces with two clowns to create a music theatre show, Good Soup, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of their namesake, the French playwright and actor Molière. The production explored Molière's world through his words and the music of his time, and premiered in London in July 2022 in the intimate and theatrical surroundings of Sands Films Studio.
Ensemble Molière’s first album, The Kings Playlist, was released on Linn Records on 22 March 2024. A soundtrack of music dedicated to every moment of King Louis XIV’s day, featuring some of the leading French Baroque composers including Lully, Charpentier, Delalande and Marais. is available via the website.
FLAVIA HIRTE - flute
ALICE EARLL - violin
CATRIONA MCDERMID - bassoon
KATE CONWAY - viola da gamba
SATOKO DOI-LUCK - harpsichord
“Ensemble Molière are clearly totally absorbed into the French Baroque style of performing, their eloquent playing revealing the sensitivities and bon goût that the genre demands.”