Sir John Eliot Gardiner has started a new orchestra and choir after leaving his previous ensemble over an assault allegation.
The 81-year-old conductor apologised last year for losing “his temper” with a bass musician who went the wrong way off stage at a concert in the south of France.
On Monday, Sir John announced the Constellation Choir and Constellation Orchestra, under the umbrella Springhead Constellation, which will be led by him.
He said: “Since my return to conducting in Montpellier in July, I have been deeply moved and inspired by the extremely warm and enthusiastic messages of support I have received from musicians, presenters and promoters alike.”
He withdrew from engagements including a BBC Prom and said he was seeking specialist help after allegedly hitting William Thomas at a performance of Berlioz’s Les Troyens with the Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique and Monteverdi Choir in La Cote-Saint-Andre.
In July, the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestra’s (MCO) board said it had decided Sir John would not be “returning to the organisation” as leader and artistic director.
Sir John said at the time that he believed it was best he parted ways with the orchestra, and “apologised repeatedly and unreservedly for losing control in such an inappropriate fashion”.
After he left, more than 100 musicians from the orchestra asked for his return, which the MCO branded a “dirty tricks campaign” against it by a small group.
Two-time Grammy winner Sir John said: “I made clear when I parted company with the MCO earlier this summer that I was not in any sense ready to retire.
“I said I would be focusing on a rich variety of new projects. Springhead Constellation and this tour – which will be the first of many – represents the realisation of that commitment and I am hugely energised about what we can go on to achieve together.
“More than anything else, I am so excited and grateful to be working with such exceptional musicians once again, not forgetting the important lessons I have learnt and needed to learn from the past year.”
Among the players joining his tour will be principal oboist Michael Niesemann, principal viola player Fanny Paccoud, and lead violinist Kati Debretzeni.
We are very excited to announce that Christophe Rousset will be joining us for our Baroque Christmas tour of Bach and Charpentier, with concerts at La Scala, Milan and MCO's home at St Martin-in-the-Fields, London. Read more: https://t.co/i3c0RmsikK pic.twitter.com/Kt1sWTugz2
— MonteverdiChoir&Orch (@mco_london) August 22, 2024
Sir John added that it is a “unique new project embodying a vibrant collective of musical ensembles, creative artists and makers”.
“Our flagship groups the Constellation Orchestra and the Constellation Choir will produce ambitious, multidisciplinary performance projects that tour around the world.
“Our aspiration is to create accessible, engaging and educational performances that resonate across all generations and geographies.”
They will perform a series of concerts at five venues in Germany, France, Austria and Luxembourg this December, before planning to tour throughout 2025 and into 2026.
The dates are as follows: December 7 at Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, December 9 at Wiener Konzerthaus in Vienna, December 11 at Philharmonie Luxembourg, December 12 at Konzerthaus Dortmund, and December 15 at the Palace of Versailles.
Ms Paccoud, who has worked with the conductor since 2013, said the “the world needs John Eliot and his unique way of making music”.
She added: “Every concert, every project has been excellent, and I felt his work just had to continue.
“He has the power to bring the very best out of everybody and I’m extremely excited and full of hope for this tour and the future.”
Sir John conducted the Monteverdi Choir and the English Baroque Soloists during the King’s Coronation at Westminster Abbey in May 2023.
He founded the two groups along with the Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique, which make up the MCO.
French conductor Christophe Rousset is set to conduct the MCO’s Christmas programme.
