Christopher Hogwood

Christopher Hogwood is one of the most influential proponents of the historically-informed early-music movement, and is equally passionate about music of the 19th and 20th centuries. He applies the same rigour and supreme musicianship to all his work, discovering and, as far as possible, recreating the composers' intentions both in notation and performance.

BBC Music Magazine has been unstinting in its praise: "His name is a byword for excellence of playing and quality of supporting scholarship".

The year 2009 marks the anniversaries of H. Purcell, G. F. Handel, J. Haydn, F. Mendelssohn and B. Martinů -all composers close to Hogwood's heart- and his work is central to a number of celebratory projects across Europe, the Far East and the United Kingdom. The festivities reach a climax with two innovative projects with the Britten Sinfonia and the Orquestra Académica Metropolitana de Lisboa, featuring in a single evening the work of these composers.

Other highlights of 2009 include Ch. Hogwood's return to London's Royal Opera House to conduct a double-bill of Handel's Acis and Galatea and Purcell's Dido and Aeneas.

Reporting on his performances of the latter at La Scala, the Italian L'Opera critic wrote: "Christopher Hogwood... offered an interpretation... that was delicate, light as embroidery and diamond-like in its sharpness and clarity of sound".

Performances of Handel's rarely performed Arianna with the Academy of Ancient Music follow and coincide with Handel Reveal'd, a special anniversary exhibition curated by Ch. Hogwood at the Handel House Museum in London.

Mendelssohn is celebrated in a three-week event with the NHK Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo, where Hogwood will conduct his own editions of the orchestral works, an ongoing project for Bärenreiter; he also conducts Haydn's symphonies, concertos and oratorios with the Camerata Salzburg, the Austro-Hungarian Orchestra, the Karol Szymanowski Orchestra, the Krakow Philharmonic Orchestra and the NDR Radiophilharmonie of Hannover, amongst others.

Ch. Hogwood has appeared in many of the world's leading opera houses and, in addition to Handel and Purcell, conducts his first I. Stravinski's The Rake's Progress at the Royal Theatre in Madrid at the beginning of 2009. His performances of W. A. Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito for Leipzig Opera in January 2008 were acclaimed by the Leipziger-Almanach as "a highlight of the opera season". He also returns twice in 2009-2010 to the Leipzig Gewandhaus to conduct R. Schumann's Szenen aus Goethes Faust as well as works by R. Strauss, Mozart and N. Paganini.

Christopher Hogwood founded the Academy of Ancient Music in 1973 and, with the orchestra, has built up a remarkable discography of more than 200 recordings, many of which have garnered awards, and which include groundbreaking interpretations of the complete Mozart and L. van Beethoven symphonies.

Equally important is his commitment to the Neo-classical school, with composers that include Martinů, Stravinski, B. Britten, A. Copland, M. Tippett and A. Honegger. The final cd in his highly praised series of Martinů's complete works for violin/viola with Bohuslav Matoušek and the Česká Filharmonie -Hyperion- has recently been issued; the first was described by Classicstoday.com as: "The last word in brilliance and idiomatic style".

Other recording projects include the Secret Series for clavichord in Secret Mozart (Sony). International Record Review described him as "such a subtle and skilful artist that just to hear his musical thoughts on Mozart's keyboard works is a privilege". The series also includes Secret Bach and Secret Handel -Metronome-, the latter recently awarded a Diapason d'Or.

Ch. Hogwood's many publications include a survey of patronage through the ages - Music at Court-, prize-winning biographical studies of Handel and Mozart, a history of the trio sonata and investigations of British music. His book on Handel's Water Music and Music for the Royal Fireworks was recently published by Cambridge University Press -"everything one could wish for in a monograph", Musical Times- and a revised edition of his classic study of Haydn in England is being reissued for this year's anniversary. His written work has been translated into six languages.

Last year Ch. Hogwood was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Music at the University of Cambridge. He is also the recipient of the Martinů Medal and the Halle Handel Prize.

This year he launches his newest project as General Editor of the new Geminiani Opera Omnia -Ut Orpheus, Bologna-. He also sits on the board of the C.P.E. Bach Complete Works Edition, the Martinů Complete Edition, and is working on his next books, on The Classical Clavichord, Copland's Appalachian Spring, the English Virginalists and a history of the picnic.