The Mozartists

Under the direction of conductor Ian Page, The Mozartists (formerly Classical Opera) have established themselves among the most exciting period-instrument ensembles in Europe, attracting particular recognition for their fresh, dramatic and stylish performances, their imaginative and innovative programming, and their ability to discover and nurture outstanding young artists.

On stage and in concert, they have performed many of Mozart’s operas, and they have given the UK premières of operas by Gluck, Telemann, Jommelli and Hasse. They appear regularly in London at venues such as Wigmore Hall, Southbank Centre, Cadogan Hall and the Barbican Centre, and they presented Mozart’s La finta semplice and Il re pastore and Arne’s Artaxerxes at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. They have also performed at many of the UK’s leading festivals and in France, Germany, Austria, Italy, Greece and the Czech Republic.

In 2015 the company launched MOZART 250, a ground-breaking 27-year project following the chronological trajectory of Mozart’s life, works and influences. Each year MOZART 250 explores the music being composed and performed by Mozart and his contemporaries exactly 250 years previously, and this major initiative has already incorporated music by over forty composers.

The Mozartists’ extensive discography has attracted widespread acclaim. In 2012 they embarked on a major new recording cycle of the complete Mozart operas on Signum Classics, and the first seven releases in the series have all received outstanding reviews. ‘The A-Z of Mozart Opera’ (Signum Classics) and ‘Blessed Spirit – a Gluck retrospective’ (Wigmore Hall Live) were both selected for Gramophone magazine’s annual Critics’ Choice, and their solo recital discs with tenor Allan Clayton (‘Where’er You Walk’) and soprano Sophie Bevan (‘Perfido!’) were both shortlisted for the International Opera Awards. At the Greater London Enterprise Awards, The Mozartists were named ‘Most Innovative Classical Music Ensemble’ in 2021 and ‘Best Nationwide Classical Music Ensemble’ in 2022.