The Academy of Ancient Music

The Academy of Ancient music was founded by Christopher Hogwood in 1973. The orchestra borrowed its name from the original Academy of Ancient Music, which was founded back in 1726 for the purpose of rediscovering music that was composed more than twenty years earlier.
  Over the next three decades the AAM’s fame spread to every corner of the globe as it built up a huge discography which now totals over 300 albums – award-winning recordings of the great baroque masterworks; celebrated opera releases starring Cecilia Bartoli, Dame Emma Kirkby and Dame Joan Sutherland; pioneering cycles of the Mozart and Beethoven symphonies. The Academy of Ancient Music has performed live on every continent except Antarctica, inspiring music lovers worldwide with the power of music as it was originally intended.
  Richard Egarr — a leading light in the next generation of early music specialists — succeeded Hogwood as Music Director in September 2006. The orchestra continues to work with an increasingly diverse roster of guest directors — Japanese Bach expert Masaaki Suzuki, acclaimed Italian violinist-virtuoso Giuliano Carmignola; conductors Bernard Labadie, Paul Goodwin, Stephen Cleobury and Stephen Layton — ensuring that fresh ideas and approaches continually inspire the group.
  The performances of The Academy of Ancient Music explore the soundworlds which inspired Bach, Handel and Haydn. It revels in the expressive power of old instruments — flutes made out of wood, trumpets without valves, strings woven from gut. The size of the orchestra is tailored to the unique character of each piece, and each one of the musicians takes a key part in the music-making. Historical knowledge inspires new musical possibilities; artistic creativity makes these possibilities come alive. This golden combination guides everything The Academy of Ancient Music does.