In the picturesque gardens of Thiré, France, a gardener meticulously trimmed topiaries, swans glided gracefully on a serene lake, and technicians prepared a temporary stage for an upcoming festival. This idyllic scene is the personal domain of William Christie, a renowned harpsichordist and conductor.
Christie, the acclaimed harpsichordist and conductor who founded the esteemed Baroque ensemble Les Arts Florissants, paused his rehearsal schedule to stroll through his magnificent gardens. He gently plucked a brown leaf, a casualty of a recent heat wave, from a fruit tree, highlighting his deep connection to and concern for his environment.
“Alas,” he sighed, lamenting the rising frequency of extreme heat. “There’s much to be done before the festival begins.”
Image: William Christie has dedicated decades to restoring an abandoned 17th-century manor house and cultivating a spectacular baroque garden.
In late August, in the small Vendée town of Thiré, Christie was immersed in preparations for his annual week-long music festival, “Dans les Jardins de William Christie.” This year’s festival was particularly special, marking the culmination of a season-long tribute to his 80th birthday and the extraordinary musical legacy he has forged. Though born in Buffalo, New York, Christie is a revered figure in France, celebrated for his pivotal role in reviving French baroque music and elevating composers like Lully, Charpentier, Couperin, and Rameau. His dynamic and innovative performances have proven that early music can be both thrilling and fashionable, consistently drawing crowds to prestigious venues from Versailles to the Brooklyn Academy of Music, where he is set to perform again in December.
Whether tending to his music or his gardens, Christie embodies the essence of a perfectionist with an unyielding devotion to beauty. His impeccable style is reflected in both his meticulously curated Grand Siècle home and its breathtaking gardens. Similarly, the baroque repertoire, which was once largely neglected, now thrives under his ensemble’s masterful care, mirroring the vibrant resurgence he orchestrated.
Image: When Christie first discovered the property in 1985, it was nothing more than open fields.
Image: Today, the estate boasts a spectacular Baroque garden adorned with intricate topiary.
Christie recounted that upon his arrival in France in 1970, early music was almost unheard of in concert halls. Later, in 1985, when he stumbled upon the Thiré property, it was merely an abandoned house amidst barren fields. Yet, he possessed the unique vision to see its dormant potential, both musically and horticulturally.
“The entire vision was largely in my head,” he stated, referring to his elaborate garden. However, this statement could just as easily apply to his ensemble and its ambitious projects, all born from his singular imagination.
The Eloquence of Music: Christie’s Vision
Hours later, in the village community hall, Christie led a rehearsal of Charpentier’s “La Descente d’Orphée aux Enfers.” He was working with the latest cohort from Le Jardin des Voix, his academy for training young singers, established in 2002, alongside a small group of accompanying musicians.
With a lean physique and spectacles, dressed in lemon-colored pants and a crisp shirt, Christie raised a hand, bringing the music to a halt. “Do you have the text in front of you?” he probed the cellist, who nodded nervously. “It’s a crucial question,” Christie emphasized. “To truly interpret French music, one must grasp how the inherent musicality of its language, declamation, and syntax forms the very essence of its eloquence.”
Throughout the rehearsal, he constantly intervened, refining the singers’ articulation and emphasis (“Please, give me words!”), playfully correcting an over-the-top scream (“No, no, that’s a tryout for ‘Turandot’”), and dramatically illustrating a dying breath (“Je meu-eu-eurs…”), often insisting on countless repetitions of a single phrase.
Video: Witness a rehearsal for a performance during the “Dans les Jardins de William Christie” festival.
“He demands excellence because he demands it of himself,” observed Myriam Rignol, a viola da gamba player with 12 years in the ensemble. “You don’t have to follow his exact instructions, but you must convince him with your interpretation. Technique is almost secondary; passion is paramount.”
Mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato, who collaborated with Les Arts Florissants on Handel’s “Hercules” in 2004, admitted to arriving at rehearsals “duly terrified,” expecting a barrage of corrections due to Christie’s reputation for demanding precision.
Instead, she recalled, Christie welcomed the cast with a powerful speech, declaring the work a “true human drama” and urging them to contribute everything vocally, from the “whitest white sound” to “full-throttle screams.”
“I felt completely unleashed,” DiDonato recounted, having earlier surprised Christie with a performance at his 80th birthday concert at Carnegie Hall.
Image: William Christie at the harpsichord during a rehearsal, just days before the festival’s opening.
Soprano Sonya Yoncheva, now a sought-after talent in leading opera houses worldwide, credits her career’s true beginning to her participation in his Jardin des Voix program in 2007. “Bill’s innovation lies in his approach to music, combining profound knowledge with an almost primal instinct for color,” she explained. “His intellect and charm transform the music into something deeply emotional, which he effortlessly communicates to the audience.”
An Unplanned Musical Path: Paris During Wartime
Remarkably, Christie initially had no plans for a musical career. His early piano lessons were with his mother, an accomplished musician who directed the church choir and was a passionate advocate for the Buffalo Philharmonic.
“Through the choir, I gained an understanding of sacred music, one of Western music’s most vital elements,” Christie remarked from his barrel-vaulted library, surrounded by books, scores, and classical busts.
Image: “This music, the French Baroque, is wonderfully rhythmic for dance,” Christie observed. “I believe Rameau is as captivating for a choreographer as Stravinsky.”
He confessed to an “incredible fascination for early music” even in his youth, going so far as to damage his parents’ piano by attaching thumbtacks to the hammers to emulate a harpsichord after hearing Handel’s “Messiah.”
At Harvard, he studied art history, actively participating in musical societies and ensembles. He once isolated himself for a week, captivated by a recording of Janet Baker in Rameau’s “Hippolyte et Aricie,” gifted by a roommate.
It wasn’t until his third year that he embraced his true calling. “A music faculty member once challenged me: ‘Why are you hesitating?’” Christie remembered. “‘Look in the mirror and admit that the only thing you do well and love is making music.’”
He pursued graduate studies at Yale under harpsichordist Ralph Kirkpatrick, followed by a year of teaching at Dartmouth. A staunch opponent of the Vietnam War, the tragic shooting of four protesting students at Kent State University in 1970 prompted a life-altering decision. “I told myself, that’s it, my time here is over,” he recalled.
A self-proclaimed Francophile, fluent in French and deeply enamored with its music, he made his way to Paris.
Image: Christie admitted to an initially cool reception in Thiré, a small community wary of outsiders when he first moved there.
Image: Today, his annual festival attracts approximately 10,000 visitors to Thiré.
Dusting Off Forgotten Masterpieces
For several years, Christie moved between Paris, Amsterdam, and London, teaching and performing with various ensembles. In 1979, driven by a desire to revitalize the languishing French early music scene, he established Les Arts Florissants—a flexible ensemble of singers and musicians dedicated to performing baroque repertoire on period instruments. The group was named after a 17th-century Charpentier opera.
“While Dutch and British musicians excelled at Vivaldi and Handel, French music remained largely untouched,” he explained. “The French, though acknowledging it, believed all music could be played with a single modern technique. It was the last remaining body of 16th to 18th-century music waiting to be rediscovered, and we made it happen.” The ensemble’s defining moment arrived in 1987 with a groundbreaking production of Lully’s “Atys” at the Opera Comique in Paris, directed by Jean-Marie Villegier. This marked the opera’s first Parisian performance in over two centuries, and its vibrant, innovative staging shattered any lingering perception of baroque music as merely academic.
Image: Christie directing a group of singers in the village hall. He taught and played with ensembles in Paris, Amsterdam and London before starting Les Arts Florissants in 1979.
“The staging was spectacular, and we dedicated countless hours to making the music profoundly eloquent, transforming the recitative from merely acceptable to truly thrilling,” Christie shared. “We meticulously sought out authentic sounds on period instruments, daring to experiment in ways that modern players might shy away from.” He described it as “grand musical theater,” a pivotal moment that launched them onto the global stage. In the decades that followed, Christie and Les Arts Florissants became mainstays in leading opera houses and concert halls. They captivated audiences with unexpected collaborations featuring innovative directors and choreographers, including Robert Carsen (Handel’s “Alcina” and Rameau’s “Les Boréades”), Debra Warner (Purcell’s “Dido and Aeneas”), Peter Sellars (Handel’s “Theodora”), Basil Twist (Mondonville’s “Titon et l’Aurore”), and Mourad Merzouki (Purcell’s “The Fairy Queen”), to name a few.
“Bill’s astonishing quality was his radical openness,” noted Peter Sellars. “When working with Handel, preconceived notions are irrelevant; the music itself must speak, and with Bill, I found a partner truly receptive to exploring new possibilities.”
Video: Beyond cultivating magnificent gardens, Christie has also meticulously restored an abandoned 17th-century manor house.
Nicholas Kenyon, former director of the Proms, Britain’s premier classical music festival, emphasized that Christie’s unique blend of theatrical flair, deep musical scholarship, and sophistication has been crucial to his widespread influence. “While others have brought this music into the mainstream, he has done so in a uniquely distinctive, theatrical, and audience-engaging manner,” Kenyon stated.
Strolling through his gardens, Christie spoke passionately about his collaborations with directors and choreographers. “This music is incredibly rhythmic, perfect for dance,” he enthused. “I believe Rameau offers as much intrigue to a choreographer as Stravinsky. While I’ve participated in period revivals, they often feel far less liberating and enjoyable.”
Securing the Legacy: The Future of the Past
Christie has received a warm welcome in his adopted France, where he gained citizenship and earned numerous accolades, including the Légion d’honneur and election to the Académie des Beaux-Arts in 2008. Since 2015, Les Arts Florissants has proudly served as a resident orchestra at the Philharmonie de Paris.
“Life in France has had its challenges and setbacks,” Christie admitted, recalling the initial cool reception he received in Thiré, a small, insular community wary of outsiders.
With an eye toward the future, Christie appointed Paul Agnew, a long-time singer and conductor with Les Arts Florissants, as co-director in 2019. The ensemble has also evolved into a foundation, which now owns and meticulously preserves both the historic house and its gardens. This foundation has further acquired and restored other properties in Thiré, making the village a vibrant hub where Christie’s festival draws approximately 10,000 visitors annually.
Image: Paul Agnew, co-director of Les Arts Florissants, pictured in the beautiful gardens at Thiré.
“Despite France’s occasional theatricality, it has shown me great kindness,” Christie reflected. “I’ve been able to achieve things here that I might not have accomplished anywhere else.”
His ambitious next endeavor involves constructing a new theater with dedicated rehearsal space in Thiré. Currently, the only large-scale performance venue is the magnificent outdoor stage over the lake, known as the Mirroir d’eau. The foundation has already secured land and initial funding for a feasibility study, signaling a significant fundraising challenge ahead.
Christie admits to occasional moments of self-doubt: “Do I ever question what I’m doing? Absolutely.”
Yet, he possesses a remarkable ability to transform improbable dreams into reality. “That’s his genius,” remarked Thomas Dunford, a lutenist in Les Arts Florissants. “He envisions what he desires, and then he simply makes it happen.”
Image: Christie mused, “Despite France’s occasional theatrical flourishes, it has been incredibly gracious to me. I’ve realized accomplishments here that might have been impossible elsewhere.”