Richard Egarr made his H&H debut in 2008, and most recently led H&H in performances of Beethoven Symphony No. 5 in 2011. He has worked with all types of keyboards, performing repertoire ranging from 15th century organ music to Berg and Maxwell Davies on modern piano. Egarr enjoyed his musical training as a choirboy at York Minster, at Chetham’s School of Music in Manchester, and as organ scholar at Clare College Cambridge. His studies with Gustav and Marie Leonhardt further inspired his work in the field of historical performance.

As a conductor, Egarr has presented a wide range of repertoire, from Bach’s St. Matthew Passion to John Taverner’s Ikon of Light. He directs specialized ensembles and modern orchestras alike. He is Music Director of the Academy of Ancient Music, having succeeded its founder Christopher Hogwood in 2006. Egarr has directed many oratorios and operas, notably Messiah, Esther, Acis & Galatea, Alcina, L’Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato, Athalia and Alexander’s Feast by Handel; Haydn’s The Creation, Purcell’s Fairy Queen and Dido & Aeneas, Telemann’s St Matthew Passion and Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Bach’s B minor Mass and the St. Matthew Passion (with the Dutch Bach Society, and in a staged version at Glyndebourne). He has conducted ‘modern’ orchestras such as Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, the Residentie Orchestra, and the Chamber Orchestra of Europe. This season he conducts the AAM on several tours across Europe and Asia. Egarr has given many solo performances throughout Europe, Japan and the USA (with Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier and Goldberg Variations). He has appeared as orchestral soloist with the English Concert, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, the Orchestra of the 18th Century, the Dutch Radio Chamber Orchestra, and the Netherlands Wind Ensemble. Egarr has earned a great reputation as a chamber musician, also thanks to longstanding relationship with violinist Andrew Manze.

Richard Egarr records exclusively for Harmonia Mundi USA. His solo output comprises works by Frescobaldi, Gibbons, Couperin, Purcell, Froberger, Mozart, and J.S. Bach (Goldberg Variations and Well-Tempered Clavier Book I). He has an impressive list of award winning recordings with violinist Andrew Manze, including Sonatas from Bach, Biber, Rebel, Pandolfi, Corelli, Handel, Mozart, and Schubert. With the Academy of Ancient Music he has recorded the complete Bach harpsichord concertos and an entire set of Handel discs including the Concerti grossi Op. 3 (Gramopone Award 2007), the Organ Concertos Op. 4 (MIDEM Award 2009), and 7 and his Sonatas Op. 1 and 5, as well as released the Brandenburg Concertos from J.S. Bach.