Biography

BERNARD LABADIE is widely regarded as one of the world’s leading conductors of Baroque and Classical repertoire. He founded Les Violons du Roy and was their music director for three decades. He continues to be Music Director of La Chapelle de Québec, the chorus he founded in 1985. He is Principal Conductor of the Orchestra of Saint Luke’s in New York.

Recent guest conducting highlights include appearances with the Chicago Symphony, Handel & Haydn Society, National Arts Centre Orchestra, Toronto Symphony, Dallas Symphony, Montreal Symphony, Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, Orchestre National de Lyon, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. He made his San Francisco Symphony debut in 2005.

His extensive discography includes recordings on the Dorian, ATMA and Virgin Classics labels, including George Frideric Handel’s Apollo e Dafne and a collaborative recording of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Requiem with Les Violons du Roy and La Chapelle de Québec, both of which received Canada’s Juno Award. Other recordings include C.P.E. Bach’s complete cello concertos with Truls Mørk and Les Violons du Roy; J.S. Bach’s complete piano concertos with Alexandre Tharaud, both on Virgin Classics; and Franz Joseph Haydn’s piano concertos with Marc-André Hamelin as soloist, released by Hyperion. He has received Samuel de Champlain Award in Paris, and his honors include Officer of the Order of Canada and Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Québec.