"The Bernstein of Early Music" — NPR Music, CD Review /
“Everything sounds newly minted, bursting with vitality”– BBC Music Magazine
Richard Egarr brings a joyful sense of adventure and a keen, enquiring mind to all his music-making. He is equally happy conducting, directing from the keyboard or playing concerti (on organ, harpsichord, fortepiano or modern piano), giving solo recitals, playing chamber-music, and indeed talking about music at every opportunity.
Music Director of the Academy of Ancient Music since 2006 (when he succeeded Christopher Hogwood), Egarr complements this with a handful of other select period ensembles – this season he works with the Handel and Haydn Society in Boston, with Tafelmusik and Portland Baroque. He is increasingly sought-after by non-period chamber and symphony orchestras, and in April 2011 he goes to the Dallas Symphony for the first time, conducting Bach. He will also make his debuts this season with the Rotterdam Philharmonic and with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales conducting classical programmes, conducts the Swedish Chamber Orchestra, returns to the Brussels Philharmonic for Mendelssohn’s Elijah, the Residentie Orchestra for a programme dedicated to Stokowski, and to the Scottish Chamber Orchestra where he is invited every season.
Egarr’s plans with the Academy of Ancient Music this coming season include concert performances of Mozart’s opera La Finta Giardiniera at the Barbican Centre and the Theatre des Champs-Elysees; tours to Japan and Korea with Sumi Jo and to the Perth Festival, Australia; performances across the UK (including Glasgow City Halls and Birmingham Town Hall) of Bach’s Brandenburg Concerti; and their own series at Cadogan Hall and the Wigmore Hall in London and at West Road in Cambridge which this season explore the Bach dynasty.
Since his appointment as Music Director, Egarr has established the AAM’s own chorus, and operas/oratorios lie at the heart of his repertoire. In summer 2010 Egarr conducted Mozart’s La Clemenza di Tito at the Netherlands Opera Academy (where he will return in 2011 for Rossini) and Handel’s Saul with the Britten-Pears Baroque Orchestra at Snape Maltings. He made his Glyndebourne debut in 2007 conducting a staged Matthew Passion.
Richard Egarr has given many solo and concerto performances throughout Europe, Japan and the USA and for many years had a duo with violinist Andrew Manze. This coming season he plays chamber music at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw and at the Wigmore Hall.
He records exclusively for Harmonia Mundi USA. His solo output comprises works by Frescobaldi, Gibbons, Couperin, Purcell, Froberger, Mozart and J.S. Bach (Goldberg Variations and Well-Tempered Clavier). He has an impressive list of award winning recordings with violinist Andrew Manze, including Sonatas from Bach, Biber, Rebel, Pandolfi, Corelli, Handel, Mozart and Schubert. With the Academy of Ancient Music he has recorded J.S. Bach’s harpsichord concertos and Brandenburg Concertos. In the Handel year 2009 they completed a 7 CD series of Handel discs including the instrumental music Op.1, 2 and 5, the Concerti grossi Op.3 (which won a Gramophone Award in 2007) and the Organ Concertos Op.4 (MIDEM Award and Edison Award 2009) and Op.7.
Richard Egarr trained as a choirboy at York Minster, at Chetham’s School of Music in Manchester, and as organ scholar at Clare College Cambridge. His studies with Gustav and Marie Leonhardt further inspired his work in the field of historical performance.
Ricard Egarr is represented by Intermusica.
August 2010 / 553 words. Not to be altered without permission. Please contact us if this biography is out of date.
Sample conducting programmes
Baroque
1.
BACH Brandenburg 1
HANDEL Concerto a due Cori
***
BACH Brandenburg 5 (with piano or harpsichord - single players)
HANDEL Fireworks Music
2.
HANDEL Water Music in D
PURCELL Instrumental Music from The Faery Queene
***
HANDEL Water Music in F
BACH Suite 3 in D
3,
HANDEL Concerto a due Cori
BACH Brandenburg 3
Corelli Op.6,1
***
HANDEL Op.6,1
PURCELL/STOKOWSKI Dido's Lament
BACH Suite 3
4.
J-F.REBEL - Chaos from Les Elements
J-F.REBEL - Les Characteres de la Danse
BACH - Suite 4
***
LULLY - Suite of Music from the Film 'Le Roi Danse'
BACH - Suite 3
5.
PURCELL - Instrumental Suite from Fairy Queen
WILLIAM LAWES - String Fantasy
HANDEL - Concerto a due Cori
***
MATTHEW LOCKE Music from 'The Tempest'
CHRISTOPHER GIBBONS - String Fantasy
HANDEL - Water Music in D
6.
VIVALDI- Concerti di Dresda
DARIO CASTELLO - 2 String Sonatas
CORELLI - Concerto Grosso from Op.6
***
HANDEL Op.3,1
H.I.F.BIBER - Night-Watch Sonata
HANDEL - Water Music in F
Classical
1.
BEETHOVEN Egmont Ov
MOZART Sympony 25
HAYDN Piano Concerto in D
***
BEETHOVEN Symphony 6
2.
MOZART Piano Concerto in G, K.453
HAYDN Clock Symphony
***
BEETHOVEN Symphony 7
3.
BEETHOVEN Symphony 2
MOZART Piano Conc. K.414 in A
***
BEETHOVEN Symphony 3
4.
MOZART Gallimathias musicum
GOSSEC Symphony
***
MOZART Piano Concerto in d, K.466
HAYDN Symphony 'Fire'
5.
MOZART Symphony 33
J.L.DUSSEK Piano Concerto Op.22
***
J.C.BACH Overture
HAYDN A London Symphony
Other
1.
MEHUL Overture Bion
MOZART Paris Symphony
***
BERLIOZ Symphony Fantastique
2.
BACH/STOKOWSKI Toccata and Fugue in d minor
MUFFAT Passacaglia from 'Armonico Tributo V'
HANDEL Water Music arr.Egarr
***
PURCELL/STOKOWSKI Suite
BACH/STOKOWSKI Air
HANDEL Fireworks Music arr.Egarr
Harpsichord recitals 2011
Sample programmes
1. "Minimalist" harpsichord programme
Girolamo Frescobaldi - Cento Partite sopra Passacagli [11']
Gavin Bryars - After Handel's Vespers [7']
Kerll - Passacaglia [6']
Handel - Chaconne in G with 60 Variations [17']
***
Byrd - The Bells [6']
Ligeti - Passacaglia Ungherese [6']
Maxwell Davies - Farewell to Stromness and Yesnaby Ground [6']
Soler - Fandango [ 12']
2. Louis Couperin/Purcell/Blow/Froberger
Louis Couperin (c.1621-61)
Suite in F major [15']
Prélude-Allemande-3 Courantes-Galliard-Chaconne-Tombeau pour M.Blancrocher
John Blow (1649-1708)
Suite in a minor [9']
Almand-Corant-Saraband-Jigg
Johann Jakob Froberger (1616-67)
Toccata XXI Suite in C major [15']
Lamentation…Ferdinand IV – Gigue – Courante - Sarabande
****
Johann Jakob Froberger (1616-67)
Tombeau de Blanchrocher [6']
Henry Purcell (1659-95)
Ground in d minor Suite in g minor
Prelude-Almand-Courante-Saraband
A New Ground
Suite in D major [16']
Prelude - Allemande- [Hornpipe]
Louis Couperin (c.1621-61)
Suite in C major [16']
Prélude-Allemande-3 Courantes-2 Sarabandes-Chaconne
Scottish Chamber Orchestra
“What a firecracker he is. Showman, raconteur, wit, outrageous entertainer, dynamo and spontaneous energiser of music: he does the lot, with style… His Mozart was taut, crisp and stylish… he gave scorching performances of Beethoven’s Prometheus Overture and a total-energy account of the Eighth Symphony, with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra playing like a band possessed.”
Glasgow Herald, March 2010
“It was a concert packed with novel touches, elemental brusqueness and raw energy. If this Beethoven symphony is about making a short, shart point, Egarr made it uncompromisingly, and with a sense of connection that permeated everymoment of this intriguing programme.”
The Scotsman, March 2010
“These are outstanding accounts with impeccable intonation and consistently warm tone at every dynamic level, and excellent balance across a wide stereo spectrum”
BBC Music Magazine, December 2009
“Egarr’s performances of Handel’s Op.7 organ concertos … are fantastically exciting, often surprising, sometimes whimsical, occasionally eccentric, always compelling”
Early Music Today, October/November 2009
“The Academy of Ancient Music are intimate conversationalists, alert to every nuance of Egarr’s abiding wit and pungent repartee”
BBC Music Magazine, October 2009
“Everything sounds newly-minted, bursting with vitality and instinct with risk”
BBC Music Magazine, October 2009
“Egarr’s choice of registrations is consistently delightful and his playing sparkles with vitality and character. The musicianship of the Academy of Ancient Music is outstanding, and their articulate and dynamically shaded playing is subtle and responsive to a sentimental spectrum.”
Gramophone, August 2008
“When I heard that England’s Academy of Ancient Music had hired keyboardist and conductor Richard Egarr, I was absolutely delighted… I’ve been waiting for a conductor like Egarr to come along for some time… it wouldn't be a stretch to call him "the Bernstein of Early Music"… he’s one of the most exciting and delightful musicians of our time”
USA National Public Radio, March 2008
“Rarely has the Ancient seemed so intrinsic to the Now”
Louisville Courier-Journal, February 2008
Richard Egarr's 2008 USA tour with the Academy of Ancient Music
“Academy performs with vigor, virtuosity"
The Academy of Ancient Music has entered a period of revitalization under its new music director, harpsichordist Richard Egarr.”
David Weininger, Boston Globe, February 2008
“The Ancient becomes new again"
There may be ensembles that articulate the pleasures of Baroque repertoire more persuasively than the Academy of Ancient Music, but I highly doubt it. The vast and furious catalog of satisfactions heard last night at St. Francis-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church -- where the British-based AAM played as part of this season's Speed Endowed Concert Series -- was enough to send specialists and lay listeners alike into giddy shivers of delight.
Egarr not only played his instrument with consummate vigor and skill (most notably during J.S. Bach's Harpsichord Concerto No. 7 in G minor, BWV 1058), he urged his 11 colleagues on in a similar imperative. All proved to be terrific advocates.
With their superlative qualities of attack and overall rhythmic acuity, melded to a way of swelling particular phrases with remarkably supple rubato, the AAM members were fascinating creatures of their art. Rarely has the Ancient seemed so intrinsic to the Now.”
The Louisville Courier-Journal, February 2008
“Under the Academy of Ancient Music’s new director, Richard Egarr, the orchestra sound as good as ever, perhaps even reinvigorated and a few degrees sparklier... Egarr could not have hoped for a better way to begin his tenure.”
Gramophone, October 2007
“The Academy of Ancient Music is in world-beating form once more … Egarr and the musicians play with dynamism and warmth which suggests that Egarr's tenure with this band is going to be a rewarding one. Long may it last.”
Gramophone, April 2007
“Spunky, beautifully polished performances"
The Times, March 2007
From Egarr's March 2006 US solo debut
"Egarr, with all his attention to Baroque tunings and aesthetics, had done something remarkable: He made us hear the variations in a totally new, or maybe an old, way."
Richard Scheinin, San Jose Mercury News, March 2006
“This is why nothing can replace live concerts. You can buy the new recording of Bach's ‘Goldberg’ Variations by harpsichordist Richard Egarr, on the Harmonia Mundi label, and hear a note-perfect, brilliantly interpreted version of a masterpiece. Or you can go hear Egarr in person, watching and listening as he completely reinvents the music, lingering here and forging ahead there."
Seattle Times, March 2006
In recital with Steven Isserlis
“Whether through long hours of rehearsal or natural musical chemistry or both, this is a partnership that draws the best from each individual. If at times Isserlis and Egarr seemed like two unselfconscious children playing a game of physical and imaginative complexity beyond the watching adults' comprehension, their programming likewise verged on the cheeky. I don't know but this was an intoxicating debut and I can't wait to hear more from them.”
Anna Picard, The Independent on Sunday, July 2002
With Portland Baroque Orchestra, conducting Handel's Messiah:
“Egarr's 'Messiah' was truly an impassioned pairing of opera and prayer. No pokerfaced pedantry here, but interpretation engendered in and expressed through human emotions; no ridiculously racing tempos, but a relaxed, sensual feel for phrasing and mood. Egarr's exuberance, vivid coloring and flexible rhythms were reflected not just by the orchestra but by the PBO Chorus and four soloists.”
Willamette Week, December 2001
“Possibly the Portland Baroque Orchestra's finest Messiah yet. Richard Egarr led with a combination of refinement and vitality, making Handel's music vivid, exciting and acutely expressive of the biblical texts. Egarr is an energetic but controlled conductor, and his good rapport with the ensemble was palpable... Even at low dynamics and gentle tempos, as in the overture that set much of the tone for the evening, there was a feeling of quiet excitement.”
The Oregonian, December 2001
German Reviews
"Bach korrekt und lebhaft interpretiert
“Das Wiener Kammerorchester eröffnete seinen Matineenzyklus im Konzerthaus unter dem Dirigenten und Cembalisten Richard Egarr mit vier der sechs Brandenburgischen Konzerte Bachs. Eine gute Wahl. Voll Verve und Spielfreude geht's durch die berühmten Werke. Mitunter bieten die Musiker stupende Leistungen in Sachen Fingerfertigkeit und Bravour... Das Wichtigste ist aber, dass man da einen harmonischen Gesamtklang hört. Herzhaft klingen die raschen Sätze, geradlinig und feinkörnig wird in den langsamen musiziert. Bach korrekt und lebhaft interpretiert.”
Wien Kronenzeitung, October 2002
“Auch Egarr - in Aschaffenburg längst kein Unbekannter mehr - fesselte zur Händelsuite sein Publikum durch eine klug disponierte und mit brillanter Fingerfertigkeit ausgeführte Interpretation, erwiesen sich beide Künstler in den Sonaten als kongeniale Disputanten im Netzwerk polyphoner Meisterschaft. In Klang und Gestaltung so nahe wie möglich und einem einzigen dynamischen Pulsschlag folgend boten sie die Werke aus einem Geist.”
Main Echo, August 2002
Recordings
Richard Egarr / Academy of Ancient Music / BACH Brandenburg Concertos
“The new Egarr-AAM Brandenburgs really blow. In a good way. They blow centuries of library dust off these pieces …Egarr & Co. are in it to win it”
Stereophile, June 2009
“…a hot traversal of Bach’s Brandenburg.”
The New York Times, June 2009
“a recording you must hear …the playing is revishing.
BBC Music Magazine, June 2009
“…your jaw might drop at the virtuosity.
The Philadelphia Inquirer, June 2009
Richard Egarr / Academy of Ancient Music / HANDEL Organ Concertos, Op.4
“Here, Egarr conducts the Academy of Ancient Music while playing the organ. But he's also a versatile artist on all kinds of keyboards: historic organs, harpsichord, fortepiano, and modern piano. He plays music from many eras, and has a remarkable gift for combining subtle musical gestures with forward–moving, irrepressible rhythms.
While I've admired Egarr's recordings for some time, he's even better in person. His recent performance with the Portland Baroque Orchestra was one of the most exciting musical evenings I've had in years. The way he communicates with audiences reminds me of Leonard Bernstein's ability to engage listeners without talking down to them. He also matches Bernstein's onstage charisma, so it wouldn't be a stretch to call Egarr "the Bernstein of Early Music."
I've been waiting for a conductor like Egarr to come along for some time — a conductor who pursues historical authenticity but allows himself an emotional involvement often avoided by many other early-music specialists. While he has wonderful technique, he's much more than a virtuoso of finger work; Egarr is a virtuoso of nuance, of dancing rhythms and sparking melodies. He's one of the most exciting and delightful musicians of our time.”
Tom Manoff, NPR Music, March 2008
"Egarr gives wonderful, insightful, technically solid performances, tending to Handelian authenticity with his free, fancy, and liberal use of ornamentation, enlivened with a real ‘in the moment’ improvisational feel. ... the whole production, from Egarr's notes to the vibrant performances, has an air of good spirits and ensemble camaraderie, a situation that Handel himself certainly would have envied."
David Vernier, Classical Today, March 2008
"In every musical choice he makes, Egarr fashions fresh accounts of works that often play as stodgy standoffs between pompous organ and dutiful band. In a variety of moods, these pieces come off as engaging exchanges and advancements of musical ideas." Rating: Outstanding - Wild Applause.
Steve Winn, San Francisco Chronicle, March 2008
"The orchestra (which Mr. Egarr conducts from the keyboard) finds the bucolic heart of the composer as only an English group can. Mr. Egarr displays brilliant finger work and high spirits in the organ solos. He has retained just enough of his rhythmic capriciousness to keep things interesting."
Lawson Taitte, Dallas Morning News, March 2008
EGARR WINS THE MIDEM CLASSICAL AWARD FOR HANDEL'S ORGAN CONCERTOS OP.4
“Richard Egarr receives the Midem Classical Award in the Concerto category for his recording of Handel Organ Concertos op 4 on Harmonia Mundi.
A critical and popular favorite, the recording landed in the top five on Billboard’s Classical Chart, made Critics’ Best of 2008 lists, including that of NPR Performance Today’s Fred Child who noted Egarr's “light speed” improvisation. BBC Music magazine wrote, “there is a freshness and sense to what (Egarr) does which becomes more apparent with every hearing” and Gramophone rejoiced, “his playing sparkles with vitality and character.” Perhaps International Record Review summed it up best: ‘These elegant and characterful performances are simply too good to miss.’
Organ virtuoso Richard Egarr delivers a stirring rendition of George Frideric Handel's last published set of instrumental concertos. The andante opens with Egarr's exuberant flourish on the organ, answered with equal verve by the orchestra. Heard in this andante is the essence of the collection: Egarr's exciting command of the technical and emotional elements of these concertos, underpinned by the stellar performance of the Academy of Ancient Music.”
Philip Van Vleck, Billboard, August 2009