Gwendoline Blondeel studied at the Institut Royal Supérieur de Musique et de Pédagogie in Namur (Belgium) and at the Académie du Théâtre de La Monnaie in Brussels. She was a member of the young artists’ ensemble of the Grand Théâtre de Genève. In 2019, she won 1st prize at the Froville competition. As a specialist in the repertoire of the 17th and 18th centuries, she performs key roles in French Baroque opera such as Sangaride ("Atys"), Jonathas ("David et Jonathas"), and Alphise ("Les Boréades"). She is equally convincing in Italian Baroque, for example as La Musica ("L’Orfeo"), Almirena ("Rinaldo"), Dalinda ("Ariodante"), and Morgana ("Alcina"). In addition, she maintains a broad repertoire: Blonde ("Die Entführung aus dem Serail"), Frasquita ("Carmen"), Marie ("La Fille du Régiment"), Clorinde ("La Cenerentola"), as well as a soloist in Mendelssohn’s 2nd Symphony. She performs at major houses such as the Opéra Royal de Versailles, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Théâtre du Capitole Toulouse, Festival de Beaune, Teatro Real Madrid, Zurich Opera House, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, and Vienna Konzerthaus. Her musical partners include Leonardo García Alarcón, Christophe Rousset, Philippe Herreweghe, Emmanuelle Haïm, and Kazushi Ono.
8. March 2026
"Armida" – between magic and humanity: character development in early music
In cooperation with the Forum Alte Musik Zürich
-
More information:
Cooperation between the Festival Alte Musik Zürich & Opernhaus Zürich
The concert will take place at Johanneskirche: Limmatstrasse 112, 8005 Zurich
Cast
Gwendoline Blondeel
Le Consort
Le Consort is one of the leading chamber music ensembles in the field of Baroque music. Consisting of four young musicians, the ensemble places a particular focus on the Baroque trio sonata as well as on the repertoire of composers such as Corelli, Vivaldi, Purcell and Couperin. After its founding in 2016, the ensemble won first prize and the audience award at the Loire Valley International Early Music Competition in 2017. Le Consort has since released several recordings. The most recent to date, Vivaldi’s "The Four Seasons" (2025), was praised by BBC Magazine for its "transparent sound" and its "floating beauty"; the previous album "Philarmonica" (2023) impressed the specialist magazine Gramophone with its seemingly effortless historically informed performance practice. Further award-winning recordings include the albums "Opus 1" (2019) and "Specchio Veneziano" (2021). To mark its tenth anniversary, the ensemble is planning an international festival season in 2026, including its debut at the BBC Proms, an anniversary concert at the Salle Gaveau in Paris, its first opera production ("Iphigénie en Tauride") at the Opéra Comique in Paris, as well as tours through Spain, South Korea, Japan and the USA. Le Consort is ensemble-in-residence with the Orchestre National de Montpellier.