William Christie

William Christie, harpsichordist, conductor, musicologist, and teacher, is the inspiration behind one of the most exciting musical adventures of the last 40 years. A pioneer in the rediscovery of baroque music, he has introduced the repertoire of 17th- and 18th-century France to a wide audience across the globe. Born in Buffalo, New York, and educated at Harvard and Yale, Christie has lived in France since 1971. The turning point in his career came in 1979, when he founded Les Arts Florissants.   

As director of this vocal and instrumental ensemble, Christie soon made his mark as both a musician and man of the theater, concert hall, and opera house. Major public recognition came in 1987 with the production of Jean Baptiste Lully’s Atys at the Opéra-Comique in Paris.  

Christie is the uncontested master of tragédie-lyrique as well as opéra-ballet, and is just as comfortable with the French motet as with music of the court. But, his affection for French music does not preclude him from exploring other European repertoires.  

Notable among his most recent operatic work are Henry Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas at the Canal Theatres in Madrid, Royal Opera of Versailles, and Great Theater of the Lyceum in Barcelona; Purcell’s The Fairy Queen on an international tour; Marc-Antoine Charpentier’s Médée at the Paris Opera and Royal Theater in Madrid; and Jean-Philippe Rameau's Les Fêtes d’Hébé at the Opéra-Comique in Paris. 

As a guest conductor, Christie often appears alongside the Berlin Philharmonic or the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, at opera festivals, and at opera houses. His extensive discography includes more than 100 recordings.

Wishing to develop further his work as a teacher, in 2002, Christie created Le Jardin des Voix, Les Arts Florissant’s biennial baroque academy for young singers. Since 2007, he has been artist in residence at the Juilliard School in New York, where he gives master classes twice a year. In 2021, with Les Arts Florissants, he launched the first “Arts Flo Masterclasses” for young professional musicians.  

In 2022, he was the recipient of the PdSK (German Record Critics’ Award) Honorary Award.  

During the 2024-25 season, an anniversary tour and exceptional events marked the celebration of Christie's 80th birthday.

Highlights of the 2025-26 season include a South American tour of Purcell's The Fairy Queen, Charpentier's Midnight Mass at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York, George Frideric Handel's Concerti grossi, Giuseppe Domenico Scarlatti's Messa di Santa Cecilia, an international tour of Les Arts florissants / La Descente d'Orphée aux Enfers by Charpentier with the winners of the 12th edition of Le Jardin des Voix, as well as residencies at the Philharmonie Luxembourg and in Madrid.