Bernard Labadie

Bernard Labadie has established himself worldwide as one of the preeminent conductors of the Baroque and Classical repertoire, a reputation closely tied to his work with Les Violons du Roy (for which he served as Music Director from its inception until 2014) and La Chapelle de Québec. With these two ensembles he has regularly toured Canada, the US and Europe, in major venues and festivals such as Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, Walt Disney Concert Hall, Kennedy Center, The Barbican, The Concertgebouw, and the Salzburg Festival, among others. He is the Principal Conductor of the Orchestra of St. Luke’s in New York.

Recent guest conducting highlights include the Chicago Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Handel & Haydn Society, National Arts Center Orchestra, L’Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, Orchestre National de Lyon, Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg, and NDR Radiophilharmonie.

Since his triumphant debut with the Minnesota Orchestra, Mr. Labadie has become a regular presence on the podiums of the major North American orchestras, including the Chicago, Kansas City, St. Louis, Pittsburgh, New World and San Francisco symphonies; the Cleveland and Philadelphia orchestras; the Los Angeles and New York philharmonics; the Handel & Haydn Society; and L’Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal.

International audiences in past seasons have seen and heard Maestro Labadie conduct the Bayerischen Rundfunks Symphony Orchestra, Academy of Ancient Music, English Concert & Chorus, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, BBC Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Kammerakademie Potsdam, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra of the Collegium Vocale Ghent, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Royal Northern Sinfonia, Swedish Chamber Orchestra, WDR Sinfonieorchester (Cologne), and Zurich Chamber Orchestra.

On the opera podium, Maestro Labadie has served tenures as artistic director of L’Opéra de Québec and L’Opéra de Montréal. He made his Metropolitan Opera debut with Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte, a work which he also led at the Cincinnati Opera. Other operatic highlights include Handel’s Orlando with Glimmerglass Opera, Mozart’s Così fan tutte at the Mostly Mozart Festival, Mozart’s Lucio Silla with Santa Fe Opera, and concert versions of Handel’s Theodora and Samson. In 2017 he made his long-awaited debut with the Canadian Opera Company, conducting Die Zauberflöte.

Bernard Labadie’s extensive discography includes many critically acclaimed recordings on Dorian, ATMA and Virgin Classics labels, including Handel’s Apollo e Dafne and a collaborative recording of 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 Haydn’s piano concertos with Marc-Andre Hamelin as soloist, released by Hyperion.

In 2016, Bernard Labadie received the Samuel de Champlain award in Paris. The Canadian government appointed him as an “Officer of the Order of Canada” in 2005, and his home province named him a “Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Québec” in 2006.

March 2nd, 2023: Orchestra of St. Luke's Announces Expanded Carnegie Hall Season for 2023-24, Plus Three Concerts at Caramoor This Summer
- Broadway World

January 14th, 2023: Make Way for the Classic
- La Presse

January 13th, 2023: Music tips for the weekend: These are the favorite songs of Brandenburg's Infrastructure Minister Guido Beermann
- Märkische Allgemeine Zeitung

December 19th, 2022: Bernard Labadie’s with Scottish Chamber Orchestra highlighted in The Year Ahead in Classical Music
-Scotsman

May 17th, 2022: Broadway World Reviews Labadie’s St. Matthew Passion
-Broadwayworld

April 8th, 2022: Bernard Labadie Conducts the Orchestra Of St. Luke’s At Carnegie Hall
-Vulture

March 9th, 2022: Orchestra Of St. Luke’s Renews Bernard Labadie’s Contract As Principal Conductor Through 2024-25
-21C Media Group

NOT YOUR GRANDFATHER’S MOZART: BERNARD LABADIE LEADS DALLAS SYMPHONY IN LIVELY ALL-MOZART PROGRAM
“Under Labadie’s direction, the DSO turned Mozart’s Jupiter Symphony into a dazzling showpiece. Labadie heightened the drama by bringing out sudden dynamic contrasts. Fortes were vigorous, without being overdone, and some hushed moments were pushed to the edge of audibility.
…
Labadie expertly balanced the parts throughout. The winds supplied polished and well-blended contributions and the brass were emphatic and rousing, without overpowering the others.”
- Tim Diovanni, The Dallas Morning News

TWO NEW YORK ORCHESTRAS RETURN WITH ACTS OF RENEWAL
“[Labadie] led the orchestra in a lively, stylish account of the complete “Water Music.” Judging by their enthusiastic ovation, the audience seemed happy to go along for the entirety of Handel’s musical river ride.”
– Anthony Tommasini, The New York Times

AT THE PHILADELPHIA ORCHESTRA, A FUNERAL MARCH, A REQUIEM, AND MOZART’S ANGRIEST SYMPHONY. IT WAS A WONDERFUL TIME
“That’s not to minimize the revelatory nature of Bernard Labadie’s approach. The baroque and classical repertoire specialist led a slimmed-down ensemble Thursday night while sitting on a piano bench (as he does all the time now), and brought a generally early-music character to an ensemble widely admired for its fat, lustrous wall of sound.”
– Peter Dobrin, The Philadelphia Inquirer

BEETHOVEN & MOZART GETTING RIVETING INTERPRETATIONS IN FAMED HALL
“The evening began with OSL performing Haydn’s “Overture to L’isola disabitata,” which showed the tremendous enthusiasm of the orchestra members as they played along to the Sturm und Drang style. With aesthetically intelligent tempo and dynamics, the orchestra increased excitement for the night’s line-up.”
– Jennifer Pyron, Operawire

REFRESHING EXACTITUDE FROM H+ H
“Almost percussive in precision, with accentuated articulation between notes, the orchestra exercised a lean muscularity, mesmerizing to behold. More than merely illuminate a familiar masterpiece, the musicians’ x-ray vision revealed the structural rigor underlying all those catchy tunes”
– CJ Ru, The Boston Musical Intelligencer

ORATORIO OF ORATORIOS, FOREVER AND EVER: HANDEL & HAYDN SOCIETY DELIVERS A STIRRING ‘MESSIAH’
“Friday night at Symphony Hall, Handel and Haydn Society’s spry “Messiah” with conductor Bernard Labadie illuminated yet another reason why the oratorio reigns as it does. It invites listeners to connect with it, whether through religious belief or, like me, just love of music: to join the chorus in spirit, if not in actual song. Labadie and H+H’s performance didn’t so much invite as it urged.”
– Zoe Madonna, The Boston Globe

WITH MOZART AND HAYDN MASSES, LESS IS MORE
“The Orchestra of St. Luke’s with La Chapelle de Québec, conducted by Bernard Labadie, outdid all expectations, with a world-class performance that would be the envy of any ensemble.”
– Daniel Gelernter, National Review

A NEW CONDUCTOR INSPIRES THE ORCHESTRA OF ST. LUKE’S
“With Mr. Labadie at its helm, the ensemble looks set to develop a distinct profile on the New York scene. I certainly can’t remember hearing a better rendition of the opening bars of Mozart’s Requiem, with claustrophobic string figures under a yearning wind chorale — floating, evenly weighted, as on an updraft of air.”
– Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim, The New York Times

LABADIE AND THE ST. LOUIS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA PLAY A STYLISH CLASSICAL PROGRAM
“Sometimes, though, it’s the smaller concerts, and those with less-familiar music, that provide exceptional musical experiences. This weekend’s program by guest conductor Bernard Labadie and the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, proved to be a little gem.”
– Sarah Bryan Miller, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA DISPLAYS IMPRESSIVE VERSATILITY WITH CONDUCTOR BERNARD LABADIE
What impression the work would have made in other hands, one can only guess. What’s certain is that the performance Thursday left at least one regular listener wanting more. More of Rigel, more of Labadie, and more of both with the Cleveland Orchestra.
– Zachary Lewis, Cleveland Plain Dealer

MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA AND CHORALE OFFER A “REQUIEM” OF RARE BEAUTY
– Rob Hubbard, Twin Cities Pioneer Press

BSO OPENS NEW YEARS WITH ALL-MOZART PROGRAM
There were deft touches at nearly every turn, little bends in phrase or tempo that made the music seem quite new. The way the conductor caught both the suavity and the swagger of the Minuet was but one example.
– Tim Smith, Baltimore Sun

ST. LUKE’S ORCHESTRA PLAYS MOZART AND BEETHOVEN AT CARNEGIE HALL
“Gorgeous playing of genius works… French-Canadian conductor Bernard Labadie, the principal conductor designate of the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, led the orchestra in its triumphant second concert of the season at Carnegie Hall.”
– Barry Bassis, The Epoch Times