Le Banquet Céleste - France

Since 2024, the artistic direction of Le Banquet Céleste has been the collective responsibility of a team of musicians who have been loyal to the ensemble for many years. Le Banquet Céleste has occupied a unique place in the landscape of European baroque ensembles for fifteen years, and the project has preserved its human and musical dimension. Attached to the sacred and secular repertoires championed by the ensemble since its creation, Le Banquet Céleste retains its vocal signature, which is balanced with the instrumental repertoire, in the image of the members who embody the new artistic direction.
The programmes cover Europe in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries with A. Stradella, F. Cavalli, C. Monteverdi, H. Purcell, J.S. Bach and G.F. Haendel as well as G. Carissimi, J.G. Pisendel, M. Weckmann and H. Schütz. They also explore earlier repertoire with J.H. Schein and W. Byrd, in addition to later works by C.P.E. Bach and G. Benda as well as, exceptionally, contemporary music. Since its inception, Le Banquet Céleste has, at its core, focused on the music of J.S. Bach, and this close link with the composer's work remains at the heart of its artistic project.
It's only natural that Le Banquet Céleste should continue its adventure!

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Le Banquet Céleste, an ensemble in residence at the Opéra de Rennes since 2016, receives contractual support from the Ministère de la Culture (DRAC Bretagne), the Conseil Régional de Bretagne, the Conseil Départemental d'Ille et Vilaine and the Ville de Rennes. Le Banquet Céleste's projects are supported by the Centre National de la Musique, Spectacle Vivant en Bretagne, SPEDIDAM, ADAMI and SACEM. Le Banquet Céleste is a member of the association Arviva - Arts Vivants, Art Durables; a member of the F.E.V.I.S and a director of the professional association Profedim.

Members of the ensemble :
Benoît Arnould, bass-baritone
Julien Barre, cello
Patrick Beaugiraud, oboe
Deirdre Dowling, viola
André Henrich, lute
Thomas Hobbs, tenor
Kevin Manent-Navratil, harpsichord
Thomas de Pierrefeu, double bass
Simon Pierre, violin
Marie Rouquié, violin
Isabelle Saint-Yves, viola da gamba*, viola da gamba
Antoine Touche, cello

*Members of the delegation elected for 3 years