Dido & Aeneas

with Monteverdi Choir & English Baroque Soloists

Jonathan Sells first conducted the Monteverdi Choir and English Baroque Soloists in 2024 in London and became the Choir’s Director following their ‘brilliant’ (Gramophone) live recording of a cappella motets by Bruckner, Gesualdo, and others, released on SDG in 2025.  He has since led them in Handel’s mighty Dixit Dominus at the Edinburgh International Festival (recorded live for Deutsche Grammophon Stage+ and BBC Radio 3), in Snape Maltings Concert Hall, and at London’s newly restored Barts North Wing. Sells also leads the Monteverdi Choir Apprentices programme.

Himself a member of the Monteverdi Choir from 2009-2018, Jonathan Sells combines an active international singing career with conducting and musical direction.  His work is most closely associated with the music of the Baroque period, and especially that of JS Bach.  Sells has appeared as a soloist in Australia (Bach’s Weihnachts-Oratorium with the Australian Chamber Orchestra/Tognetti) and the US (Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall with Les Arts Florissants), alongside regular appearances at many major Bach and Baroque festivals across Europe, and above all in Switzerland, where he lives with his family.

In 2008 he founded the baroque collective Solomon’s Knot, “one of the UK’s most innovative and imaginative ensembles” and the Resident Baroque Ensemble at Wigmore Hall since 2023. Under his leadership, Solomon’s Knot “set new standards” with productions of JS Bach’s St JohnPassion and St Matthew Passion at Bachfest Leipzig, Thüringer Bachwochen, Snape Maltings, and Wigmore Hall. On the recommendation of Sir John Eliot Gardiner, he made his Bachfest Leipzig debut as musical director in 2016 with Bach’s Magnificat, later recorded and released on Sony Classical. Solomon’s Knot’s recording of JS & JC Bach Motets was released in 2023, and “demonstrates the innermost essence of this music like never before” (Klassisk Musikk).

Leading from within the ensemble, Sells has directed memorised performances including Bach’s Mass in B minor, St Michael’s Day cantatas (BBC Proms), Hunt Cantata and Mass in F major (Bachwoche Ansbach, released on Prospero Classical), Christmas Oratorio (Wigmore Hall), and Handel’s Messiah and Esther (Händel-Festspiele Halle, Regensburg Tage Alter Musik). In 2025, he headed Solomon’s Knot in the world premiere of Chad Kelly’s new reconstruction of Bach’s Köthener Trauermusik at Wigmore Hall, Bachfest Leipzig, and Tage alter Musik Regensburg.

Jonathan Sells has a burning curiosity for neglected geniuses of the 17th and 18th centuries such as Johann Kuhnau, George Jeffreys, and Barbara Strozzi, as well as later repertoire: he has conducted Beethoven, Dvorak, Prokofiev, Nielsen, and Varèse, and has worked with choirs from the UK to the Middle East. 

Conductor Jonathan Sells. Photo: Beny Hofer

British mezzo-soprano Bethany Horak-Hallett is establishing strong credentials as a fine interpreter of Handel, Mozart and their contemporaries on both the opera stage and the concert platform.

She recently made her Royal Swedish Opera début as Cherubino Le nozze di Figaro having previously sung the role for Garsington Opera for whom she has also performed Dorabella Così fan tutte. She sang Virtue The Choice of Hercules in a production for the London Handel Festival and more Handel follows with Tirinto Imeneo for Cambridge Handel Opera Company. Bethany will make her English National Opera début in Mozart’s Women: A Musical Journey (to be filmed for Sky Arts) and creates the role of Yolanda in Mark-Anthony Turnage’s The Railway Children for the Glyndebourne Autumn Season.

Bethany’s versatility as a performer has seen her take the roles of Lady Psyche Princess Ida with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and Prince Orlofsky Die Fledermaus for IF Opera alongside contemporary works such as Thomas Adès The Exterminating Angel (conducted by the composer) which marked her Opéra de Paris début.

Bethany has sung Bach, Handel and Haydn with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Academy of Ancient Music and with the Dunedin Consort directed by John Butt. She made her BBC Proms début with the Monteverdi Choir conducted by John Eliot Gardiner. Other ensembles with whom she has performed include The Royal Northern Sinfonia with Dinis Sousa, The English Chamber Orchestra conducted by Nicholas Kraemer and the National Symphony Orchestra, Dublin.

Bethany includes pianists Natalie Burch, Ian Tindale and Dylan Perez plus harpsichordist Steven Devine amongst her recital partners. She has given programmes at the London Handel, Oxford International Song and Ludlow Festivals.

Bethany Horak-Hallett read Music at Leeds University and completed her training at Trinity Laban Conservatoire. She was a Rising Star of the Enlightenment and a Samling Artist and won Second Prize in the 2021 International Handel Singing Competition.

Bethany Horak Hallett. Photo: Ben Reaves

Karima El Demerdasch is a German-Egyptian mezzo soprano and is currently a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zurich Opera House. After completing four years of postgraduate and opera studies at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama in London under the tutelage of John Evans, Karima’s professional career began with her debut at the Salzburg Festival as a member of the Young Singers Programme last summer.

In 2024, she made her Wigmore Hall debut as a finalist in the Kathleen Ferrier Awards, followed by her solo debut at the Barbican Hall in 2025, where she performed the world premiere of a new work for voice and orchestra by Ben Pease-Barton. Her operatic roles include Prince Orlofsky (Die Fledermaus), Dido (Dido and Aeneas), and the title role in La Cenerentola. In her second season with the Zurich Opera Studio, her role debuts will include Second Lady (Die Zauberflöte) and Cherubino (Le nozze di Figaro).

Karima El Demerdasch. Photo: Shirley Suarez

Polish baritone Hubert Zapiór is a member of the ensemble at eh Komische Oper Berlin, where he performs leading roles including Il Conte Almaviva Le Nozze di Figaro, the title roles in Don Giovanni and Eugene Onegin, Marcello La bohème, Billy Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny, Papageno Die Zauberflöte, Guglielmo Così fan tutte, and Pantalone L’Amour des trois oranges.

Recent guest engagements include Guglielmo Così fan tutte at the Norwegian National Opera and the Polish National Opera, Il Conte Le Nozze di Figaro at the Staatsoper Hannover, Papageno Die Zauberflöte at the Polish National Opera, and the title role in Don Giovanni at Wrocław Opera.

In previous seasons, he made his debuts as the Marquis d’Obigny La Traviata at the Bayerische Staatsoper, Figaro Il Barbiere de Siviglia at the Norwegian National Opera, and Papageno in Barrie Kosky’s acclaimed production of Die Zauberflöte at the Polish National Opera. During his tenure as an ensemble member at Staatsoper Hannover, he was heard in leading roles such as Figaro Il Barbiere de Siviglia, Guglielmo Così fan tutte Il Conte Le Nozze di Figaro, Papageno Die Zauberflöte, and Demetrius A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Hubert Zapiór. Photo: Jan Windszus

Soprano Johanna Wallroth has swiftly risen to international acclaim since her time in Wiener Staatsoper's prestigious Opernstudio, with standout debuts in recent seasons on both the opera and concert stages.

Debuts this season include as Pamina (Die Zauberflöte) in Simon McBurney’s production at Theater Basel, as Governess (The Turn of the Screw) with Den Norske Opera, Bellezza (Il trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno) in Robert Carsen’s production at Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, under Gianluca Capuano, and Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte) in concert with Swedish Chamber Orchestra and at Verbier Festival under Gabor Takacs-Nagy. In concert, she reprises Barber's Knoxville with The Cleveland Orchestra under Barbara Hannigan, and presents Mozart Aarias with Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra led by Karina Canellakis.

Johanna has made highly praised debuts at Glyndebourne Festival Opera as Susanna (Le nozze di Figaro) in Mariame Clément’s new production, conducted by Riccardo Minasi, and as Cleopatra (Giulio Cesare) in David McVicar’s dynamic staging, under Laurence Cummings; and elsewhere as Barbarina in Barrie Kosky’s production at Wiener Staatsoper, under Philippe Jordan, Zerlina (Don Giovanni) at Opéra de Normandie Rouen, under Ben Glassberg, and at Opernhaus Zürich in Christian Spück’s choreographed ballet based on the Madrigals of Monteverdi led by Christoph Koncz. 

Future appearances include at Staatsoper Berlin, Opera de Paris, and a return to the Glyndebourne Festival.

Johanna Wallroth. Photo: Tina Axelsson

‘They are truly one of the finest choirs of their time.’
Bachtrack

For over 60 years the Monteverdi Choir has been recognised as one of the greatest and most influential choirs in the world. Through a combination of consummate technique and historically-informed performance practice, the Choir constantly strives to bring fresh perspectives, immediacy and drama to its performances. 

The recipient of many awards, the Monteverdi Choir was named ‘Best Choir’ at the 2024 Oper! Awards, with the jury noting that: ‘At festivals, on concert tours and in their numerous recordings, this is an ensemble whose quality will always leave the listener speechless.’

The Choir’s 2026 season commenced with a European tour of Bach’s St John Passion, conducted by Peter Whelan, and a collaborative tour of Bach’s Mass in B minor with Laurence Equilbey and Accentus/Insula Orchestra. In May, Jonathan Sells conducts a production of Purcell’s Dido & Aeneas, and this August, the Choir and Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique will perform Weber’s Oberon at the BBC Proms, conducted by Sir Mark Elder. In the autumn, Christophe Rousset will conduct Handel’s Theodora on a tour to South America, and Jakob Lehmann returns to conduct Rossini’s Petite messe solennelle. This December, the Choir and EBS will perform a ‘Venetian Christmas’ with Francesco Corti, exploring a programme of Monteverdi, Schütz and Gabrieli.

The Choir’s 2025 programme expanded the range of its repertoire and conductor collaborations, including two concerts at the Edinburgh International Festival: Tavener’s The Veil of the Temple and a programme of Purcell, Bach and Handel, conducted by Jonathan Sells. Other highlights include Bach’s 1725 cantatas with Masaaki Suzuki, Mozart’s Requiem with Pablo Heras-Casado, Rossini’s Stabat Mater with Jakob Lehmann, and the Choir’s first performances of Handel’s Messiah in almost three decades, conducted by Christophe Rousset.

Founded in 1964 by Sir John Eliot Gardiner, the Monteverdi Choir has released over 150 recordings and won numerous prizes. In 2023, the Choir and English Baroque Soloists were honoured to perform at the Coronation of HM The King, with The Telegraph proclaiming ‘if the Monteverdi Choir isn’t singing when I get to the gates of Heaven, I want my money back.’

Monteverdi Choir. Photo: Paul Marc Mitchell

‘The evening’s real glory was in the orchestral playing… The performance was revelatory’ The Telegraph

For over 40 years, the English Baroque Soloists (EBS) has been one of the most innovative period-instrument ensembles, consistently challenging the preconceptions of audiences around the world. Equally at home in chamber, symphonic and operatic repertoire, its distinctively warm and incisive playing is instantly recognisable in music ranging from Monteverdi to Mozart.

The orchestra’s 2026 season commenced with a European tour of  Bach’s St John Passion conducted by Peter Whelan. In May, Jonathan Sells returned to conduct production of Purcell’s Dido & Aeneas and in June, a programme exploring Haydn’s time in London will be conducted by Peter Whelan, joined by cello soloist Christophe Coin.  This autumn, Christophe Rousset will conduct Handel’s Theodora on a tour to South America and in the UK and, in December, the EBS will perform a ‘Venetian Christmas’ with Francesco Corti and the Monteverdi Choir, exploring a programme of Monteverdi, Schütz and Gabrieli.

Highlights of 2025 included Mozart symphonies and double piano concerto with Marc Minkowksi and the Labéque sisters, Bach’s 1725 cantatas with Masaaki Suzuki, and ‘Sing to the Lord a new song’, a programme of Bach, Purcell and Handel which toured the UK. The year culminated with the orchestra’s first performances of Handel’s Messiah in almost three decades, touring to Paris, Rome, Milan and London, conducted by Christophe Rousset.

In September 2025, MCO’s own record label, Soli Deo Gloria, released its first recording of the EBS since the pandemic – an album of Charpentier Christmas music, recorded in December 2024 during a European tour conducted by Christophe Rousset. The album was recently selected as the benchmark recording of his Messe de Minuit pour Noël by France Musique.

Founded in 1978 by Sir John Eliot Gardiner, the EBS were part of the iconic Bach Cantata Pilgrimage in 2000 alongside the Monteverdi Choir, performing all of Bach’s sacred cantatas throughout Europe (recorded for Soli Deo Gloria). They have participated in major opera productions alongside the Monteverdi Choir in works by

Handel, Purcell and Monteverdi, and made the earliest recording of Mozart’s complete piano concertos on period instruments, as well as his greatest operas for Deutsche Grammophon.

Dido & Aeneas, performance photo by Paul Marc Mitchell