Ricercar Consort
The Ricercar Consort is an ensemble of instrumentalists devoted to repertory largely from the 17th century and is generally considered one of the foremost groups in the genre of Baroque music. Active for more than four decades, it has made dozens of recordings and given countless concerts across the globe. The ensemble's membership varies to accommodate the performance of small and large works. Many of its concerts and recordings involve singers, while others are strictly instrumental. The group's name pertains to a 16th and 17th century genre of instrumental music, typically contrapuntal and often involving the organ. While the repertory has embraced mostly Baroque-era music, the Ricercar Consort has ventured into the Classical period and received special praise for its complete Haydn Baryton Octets. It has recorded for the Ricercar and Mirare labels.
The Ricercar Consort was formed in Belgium in 1980 along with the Ricercar label. The director of the ensemble since its founding has been Philippe Pierlot, who is accomplished on the viola da gamba and baryton, the instrument on which he was the soloist in the ensemble's acclaimed Haydn recordings. The other founding members of the group were violinist François Fernandez and organist Bernard Foccroulle. Guest artists regularly appearing with the group include countertenors Henri Ledroit and Carlos Mena and baritone Max van Egmond. Among the consort's most important early albums was its 1983 recording on Ricercar of cantatas and motets by Johann Christoph and Johann Michael Bach. Over the years, the consort made many successful recordings of music by Bach family members, most notably of works by J.S. Bach.
In 1985, the Ricercar Consort made its first international tour, giving a series of successful performances of J.S. Bach's Musikalisches Opfer. By the early '90s, the ensemble was in demand across Europe, making notable appearances at the most prestigious early music festivals, including the popular French Festival de Saintes and the Festival des Flandres. By the end of the '90s, the ensemble was taking on larger works: its 1999-2000 season, for example, included performances of Marais' Sémélé and Alessandro Scarlatti's St. John Passion. In 2002, the Ricercar Consort received the prestigious French Diapason d'Or award for De Æternitate with Mena. The consort's 2008 Stabat Mater on Mirare contains works by several composers, including Bertali, Leopold I, and Schmelzer.
The Ricercar Consort was invited to perform Purcell's Dido and Aeneas at the 2006 Folles Journées de Nantes Festival. That year, the group performed Mozart's Exsultate Jubilate in Tokyo and gave one of the final performances at the Versaille Opera House before its restoration. The consort has continued to add to its impressive recording catalog in the 2010s and early 2020s. The group returned once more to Bach's Musikalisches Opfer, issuing a recording of the work on Mirare in 2015. In 2021, the Ricercar Consort was heard on the albums Beethoven: Irish Songs and Bach: Soli Deo Gloria.
© Robert Cummings /TiVo
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Buxtehude : Membra Jesu Nostri
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Sacred Oratorios - Released by Mirare on 22 Mar 2019
Gramophone Editor's Choice24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Da Pacem
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Classical - Released by Mirare on 8 Mar 2024
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
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24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Biber : Imitatio
Sophie Gent, Philippe Pierlot, Ricercar Consort, Maude Gratton
Classical - Released by Mirare on 5 Feb 2016
Gramophone Editor's Choice24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Bach: The Musical Offering, BWV 1079
Ricercar Consort, Philippe Pierlot, Maude Gratton, Marc Hantaï and François Fernandez
Classical - Released by Mirare on 9 Feb 2015
24-Bit 88.2 kHz - Stereo -
De profundis
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16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
In Dulci jubilo ... Deutsche Barock Weihnacht (Oeuvres du XVIIe siècle de Weckmann, Schelle, Praetorius, Schütz, etc.)
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Classical - Released by Ricercar on 1 Jan 1996
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Passions de l'âme et du cœur
Ricercar Consort, Les Ombres and Philippe Pierlot
Classical - Released by Mirare on 12 Jan 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bruhns: Das Kantatenwerk
Classical - Released by Ricercar on 8 Jan 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wilhelm Friedemann Bach : Cembalo Konzerte
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Classical - Released by Ricercar on 1 Jan 1989
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bach: Actus Tragicus (Ricercar Consort / Philippe Pierlot)
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16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Pergolesi: Stabat Mater
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Classical - Released by Mirare on 1 Oct 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Buxtehude: Kantaten
Classical - Released by Ricercar on 1 Jan 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ferrabosco & Byrd: Consort Music
James Bowman, Suzan Hamilton, Ricercar Consort, Philippe Pierlot
Classical - Released by Ricercar on 1 Jan 1999
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Intégrale des cantates
Greta De Reyghere, Ian Honeyman, Max van Egmond, Ricercar Consort
Classical - Released by Ricercar on 1 Jan 1994
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Purcell: Fantazias - Musique pour violes
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Classical - Released by Mirare on 26 Oct 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Heinrich Schütz : Histoire de la résurrection - Sept Paroles du Christ en croix
Ricercar Consort, Philippe Pierlot
Classical - Released by Ricercar on 1 Jan 1998
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Scheidt: Concertuum Sacrorum
Classical - Released by Ricercar on 1 Jan 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Lassus: Missa ad imitationem moduli Vinum bonum & Magnificat super Aurora lucis rutilat
Choeur de Chambre de Namur, Ricercar Consort, La Fenice, Peter Phillips
Classical - Released by Ricercar on 1 Jan 1995
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
WF Bach: Kammermusik
Classical - Released by Ricercar on 1 Jan 1993
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Geminiani: VI sonate di violoncello
Hidemi Suzuki, Ricercar Consort
Classical - Released by Ricercar on 1 Jan 1991
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo