BIRTH
LA PETITE BANDE (Belgium) was founded in 1972 by Sigiswald Kuijken at
the request of the record company Deutsche Harmonia Mundi in order to
record Lully's "Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme", under the direction
of Gustav Leonhardt.
The orchestra takes its name and constitution from
Lully's own orchestra at the court of Louis XIV. All its members are
internationally renowned specialists in the early music field. Although
originally La Petite Bande was not meant to become a permanent
orchestra, the success of the recordings was such that they began to
give concerts regularly.
CAREER
Having initially concentrated mainly on French music, the orchestra's
repertoire has expanded over the years to include music by the Italian
masters and that of Bach, Händel, Gluck, Haydn and Mozart. Almost all
the productions have been recorded for Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, Accent
and Denon.
La Petite Bande has performed in a multitude of
international festivals and concert series (Europe, Japan, Australia,
South-America)...
The season 2002-3 will get a festive start with a varied concerto
programme featuring compositions by Corelli, Muffat, Purcell, Telemann
and Vivaldi (this programme will tour Belgium and China). Subsequently -
in November 2002 - La Petite Bande will present Cantatas by J.S. Bach,
as usual replacing the choir by four vocal soloists : Marie Kuijken,
Petra Noskaiová, Jan Kobow, Jan Van der Crabben. The presence of La
Petite Bande at the Folle Journée (Nantes, Bilbao, Lisbon) has almost
become a tradition. In 2003 they will perform a playful intermezzo by
the rather unknown Domenico Sarro, in a semi-staged performance directed
by Béatrice Cramoix : La Furba e lo Sciocco (The Cunning Woman and the
Fool, Napoli, 1731). The Easter period will be marked by the passion
oratorio Der Tod Jesu by Graun, with soloists Suzie LeBlanc, Inge Van de
Kerkhove, Christoph Genz, Stephan Genz, and the Ex Tempore choir. The
season will come to an end with the Motets by J.S. Bach, again without a
choir, but with eight vocal soloists!
La Petite Bande is structurally endowed by the
Ministry of the Flemish Community of Belgium and by the Province of
Vlaams-Brabant. Since 1997, La Petite Bande has been
orchestra-in-residence in Leuven.
2002
