Staying true to the vision of Anne Blanchard and the late Kader Hassissi, the festival’s new artistic director, Maximilien Hondemarck, has unveiled a program where regular attendees will once again find the great names of Baroque music among the prestigious guests.

Operas, oratorios, recitals, and sacred music follow one another over four festival weekends, set as always in the enchanting Hospices but also in Beaune’s most beautiful venues, which open their doors to music especially for the occasion.

Each weekend is centered around a period, a composer, or a theme—such as Music in the Time of Louis XIV. Three great composers are particularly celebrated: Alessandro Scarlatti, in honor of the 300th anniversary of his death, as well as Jean-Philippe Rameau and the ever-iconic Georg Friedrich Handel. With Bach also in the spotlight, leading artists have answered the call of Burgundy and its music, including conductors Christophe Rousset, Vincent Dumestre, and Thibault Noally, alongside singers Véronique Gens, Ambroisine Bré, Victoire Bunel, Camille Chopin, Marie Perbost, Marie Lys, Reinoud Van Mechelen, Laurence Kilsby, and many, many more!

In order to attend the event, go to our website by clicking here!

c – Affiche Festival Opera baroque Beaune 2025

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Voltaire is said to have told the composer: “I propose that we start a revolution together, for opera today has lost itself in the corridors of entertainment. It must allow us to read the world, to ask great questions.”

For Raphaël Pichon, the reason for the censorship is encapsulated in the final verses of Act III: “People, rise up. People, awaken. People, break your chains. Fight for your freedom.” On July 4, 2024, at the Théâtre de l’Archevêché in Aix-en-Provence (and not on July 14, the day of the storming of the Bastille), the brilliant conductor Raphaël Pichon unearthed a score that he had completely reworked for the world premiere of this Samson by Jean-Philippe Rameau, set to a libretto by Voltaire.

After its great critical and public success, Claus Guth’s production is now scheduled in Paris at the Opéra-Comique from March 17 to 23, 2025. While Jarrett Ott reprises his role as Samson from Aix, the Opéra-Comique presents a refreshed cast, with Ana Maria Labin as the new Delilah. She joins Julie Roset as Timna and Mirco Palazzi as Achisch, alongside the young and immensely talented singers Camille Chopin and Laurence Kilsby.

The Opéra-Comique has no intention of touching one hair on Raphaël Pichon, whose dynamism as a conductor has worked wonders more than once in this ideal acoustic setting. Let us recall the successes of Orphée et Eurydice by Gluck, Ercole Amante by Cavalli, Hippolyte et Aricie by Rameau, Fidelio by Beethoven, and Lakmé by Delibes, as well as Miranda, a pasticcio based on a work by Purcell, and Un Autre Voyage, inspired by Schubert’s operas— all conducted masterfully by Raphaël Pichon, a regular at the house!

To go seeing Raphaël Pichon conducting, click here !

Opera Comique & Raphaël Pichon – c – Stefan Brion & Piergab

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