The English Concert & Trevor Pinnock

Trevor David Pinnock CBE Born 16 December 1946 In Canterbury Is An English Conductor Harpsichordist And Occasional Organist And Pianist.
He Is Best Known For His Association With The Period-Performance Orchestra The English Concert Which He Helped Found And Directed From The Keyboard For Over 30 Years In Baroque And Early Classical Music. As A Harpsichordist Pinnock Toured Europe With The Academy Of St. Martin In The Fields. While A Student At The RCM He Was Told By The Registrar John Stainer That It Would Be Impossible To Make A Living As A Harpsichordist. He Made His London Debut At The Royal Festival Hall In 1966 With The Galliard Harpsichord Trio Which He Co-Founded With Stephen Preston Flute And Anthony Pleeth Cello. At This Stage They Were Playing Baroque Music On Modern Instruments. His Solo Harpsichord Debut Was In 1968 At The Purcell Room In London.In November 1972 The Galliard Trio Expanded To Become The English Concert An Orchestra Specialising In Performances Of Baroque And Early Classical Music On Period Instruments. They Initially Started With Seven People But Soon Grew In Size. Pinnock Was At The Forefront Of The Period Performance Movement And The Revitalisation Of The Baroque Repertoire The Reaction Of Leonard Bernstein To His Performances Is Typical "In My Opinion The Work Of The Conductor Trevor Pinnock In This Area Is Particularly Exciting - His Performances Of Bach And Handel Make Me Jump Out Of My Seat!" He Has Appeared Frequently As A Guest Conductor With Many Of The World's Leading Orchestras Including The Boston Birmingham San Francisco And Detroit Symphony Orchestras The Saint Paul Los Angeles And Mito Chamber Orchestras The Freiburger Barockorchester Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra Mozarteum Orchestra Of Salzburg Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra Austro-Hungarian Haydn Orchestra The Chicago Symphony Orchestra And London Philharmonic Orchestra And At The Tanglewood Mostly Mozart And Salzburg Festivals. He Is A Regular Guest Conductor Of The Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra And Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie. Since Resigning His Position With The English Consort Pinnock Has Divided His Time Between Performing As A Harpsichordist And Conducting Both Modern- And Period-Instrument Orchestras. He Has Also Taken An Interest In Educational Projects. read less