Born in
Fontmell Magna, Dorset, son of
Rolf Gardiner and Marabel Hodgkin, Gardiner's early musical experience came largely through singing with his family and in a local church choir. As a child he grew up with the celebrated
Haussmann portrait of J. S. Bach, which had been lent to his parents for safe keeping during the Second World War.[2] A self-taught musician who also played the violin, he began to study conducting at the age of 15. He was educated at
Bryanston School, then studied history at
King's College, Cambridge, where his tutor was the social anthropologist
Edmund Leach.[3][4]
While an undergraduate at Cambridge he launched his conducting career with a performance of
Monteverdi's
Vespro della Beata Vergine in
King's College Chapel on 5 March 1964.[5] This either featured or led to the foundation of the
Monteverdi Choir, with which he made his London conducting debut at the
Wigmore Hall in 1966.[3] Whilst at Cambridge, he conducted the Oxford and Cambridge Singers on a concert tour of the Middle East.[3] After graduating in history, Gardiner continued his musical studies at
King's College London under
Thurston Dart and in Paris with
Nadia Boulanger, whose music had been a very early influence.[6]
After his period with the CBC Vancouver Orchestra, Gardiner went to France. From 1983 to 1988 he was Music Director of the
Opéra National de Lyon. During his period with the Opéra he founded an entirely new orchestra.[10] During his time with the Opéra National de Lyon Gardiner was also Artistic Director of the
Göttingen Handel Festival (1981 until 1990).[11] In 1989 the Monteverdi Choir had its 25th anniversary, touring the world giving performances of Handel's oratorio Israel in Egypt and
Bach's Magnificat among other works. In 1990, Gardiner formed a new period-instrument orchestra, the
Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique, to perform music of the 19th century. From 1991 until 1995 he was principal conductor of the
North German Radio Symphony Orchestra.
A European tour in 1993 with the Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique featured
Berlioz's rediscovered Messe solennelle. Beginning in
Bremen, Germany the tour ended with a recorded performance in
Westminster Cathedral, London 1993.
In 2000, Gardiner set out on his Bach Cantata Pilgrimage, performing, over a 52-week period, all of
Bach's sacred cantatas in churches around Europe and the United States.[12]
In late 2004, Gardiner toured France and Spain with the Monteverdi Choir performing pieces from the Codex Calixtinus in cathedrals and churches along the
Camino de Santiago.[13]
Gardiner has recorded over 250 albums, most of which have been published by
Deutsche Grammophon and
Philips Classics,[14] and by the
Soli Deo Gloria label, which specialises in recordings by Gardiner and by his ensembles.
In late 2012, citing health concerns, he cancelled his planned December 2013 tour of Australia with the Monteverdi Choir and the
Australian Chamber Orchestra.[20] In 2013, Gardiner published the book Bach: Music in the Castle of Heaven.[21] In 2014 he started a five-year term as President of the Leipzig
Bach Archive, being succeeded by
Ton Koopman in that position in 2019.[22][23] One of the realizations during Gardiner's presidency was the Archive's collaboration to the Bach 333 box set with the complete recordings of Johann Sebastian Bach's works, released in 2018.[24]
Gardiner conducted his Monteverdi Choir and English Baroque Soloists in a pre-service concert at Westminster Abbey for the Coronation of King Charles III.
In August 2023, Gardiner was reported to have struck the English bass singer William Thomas in front of cast members after Thomas exited the wrong side of the stage during a performance of Les Troyens at the Berlioz Festival in
La Côte Saint André, which resulted in a public backlash against the conductor.[25][26] On 24 August 2023, Gardiner withdrew from all further engagements for 2023.[27][28][29][30] The withdrawal was said to be for 'a period of reflection and, in consultation with his medical advisors ... focussing on his mental health while engaging in a course of counselling'.[31]
Honours and awards
Gardiner has received a variety of honours and awards,[32] including:
Gardiner is the son of the British rural revivalist
Rolf Gardiner (1902–1971), and the grandson of the Egyptologist
Alan Gardiner (1879–1963). His mother, Marabel Hodgkin, was a member of the
Hodgkin family, a notable
Quaker family; the artist Sir
Howard Hodgkin (1932–2017) was Gardiner's first cousin.[45]
Gardiner was married to violinist Elizabeth Wilcock from 1981 to 1997; they have three daughters. From 2001 to 2019 he was married to Isabella de Sabata,[46] granddaughter of conductor
Victor de Sabata.[47]
In his spare time, Gardiner runs a farm at Springhead near
Fontmell Magna[48] in
North Dorset, which was established by his great-uncle, composer
Henry Balfour Gardiner. His continued involvement in this project has earned him the nickname 'Uphill Gardiner' as a consequence of his unorthodox farming methods.[citation needed]
^"Birthdays today". The Telegraph. 20 April 2012. Archived from
the original on 26 April 2012. Retrieved 20 April 2014. Sir John Eliot Gardiner, conductor, 69