Pygmalion, a choir & orchestra on period instruments founded in 2006 by Raphaël Pichon, explores the filiations that link Bach to Mendelssohn, Schütz to Brahms or Rameau to Gluck and Berlioz.

Alongside the great works of the repertoire whose approach he reinterprets (Bach’s Passions, Rameau’s lyrical tragedies, Mozart’s Great Mass in C minor, Mendelssohn’s Elias, Monteverdi’s Vespers), Pygmalion strives to build original programs that highlight the links between the works while regaining the spirit of their creation: Mozart & The Weber Sisters, Miranda with music by Purcell, Stravaganza d’Amore! – which evokes the birth of the opera at the Medici court, Enfers with Stéphane Degout, the cycle Bach en 7 paroles at the Philharmonie de Paris, or Libertà! – which retraces the beginnings of Mozart’s dramma giocoso.

Pygmalion managed to create for itself a singular identity in the international musical landscape, thanks to demanding crossed projects meeting both critical and popular success.

For his lyrical works, Pygmalion collaborates with directors such as Romeo Castellucci, Katie Mitchell, Aurélien Bory, Simon McBurney, Jetske Mijnssen, Pierre Audi, Valérie Lesort, Christian Hecq or Michel Fau.

In residence at the Opéra national de Bordeaux, and as part of the Pulsations Programme, Pygmalion has been developing for a few years a season of chamber music concerts and of free workshops open to all. In response to the Covid-19 crisis, Pygmalion launched in July 2020 a new festival based in Bordeaux, a true festival-laboratory for classical music, around the theme of transmissions.

Pygmalion regularly performs on the most prestigious French stages (Philharmonie de Paris, Opéra royal de Versailles, Opéra-Comique, Aix-en-Provence, Beaune, Toulouse, Saint-Denis, Royaumont, Nancy, Montpellier etc.) and international (Köln, Frankfurt, Essen, Vienna,  Amsterdam, Beijing, Hong Kong, Barcelona, Brussels etc.).

Pygmalion has been recording for Harmonia Mundi since 2014. His discography has been distinguished in France and abroad: Victoire de la musique Classique, Classica’s Choc, Gramophone Award, Diapason d’or, Preis der Schallplattenkritik.

Pygmalion is in residence at the National Opéra of Bordeaux. It is supported by the Direction Régionale des Affaires Culturelles of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, the city of Bordeaux, the Nouvelle Aquitaine region and the Centre national de la musique. It is an associated ensemble of the Opéra Comique (2019-2022). It is also supported by Château Bailly, honorary patron of the ensemble, and by Fondation d’entreprise Société Générale C’est vous l’avenir.