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Nicolas Baldeyrou

Nicolas Baldeyrou

French clarinetist Nicolas Baldeyrou has proved himself as a "concertist well-grounded for all kinds of challenges" constantly developing himself as a soloist, chamber musician and a historical instrumentalist.

Winning prestigious competitions like the Munich ARD Competition in Munich (Germany), the Dos Hermanas Competition in Sevilla (Spain), and finally, the ICA Young Artist Competition (United States) opened to Nicolas the doors of the most prestigious concert halls all over the world – Carnegie Hall in New York, Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Philharmonie de Paris, Salzburg Mozarteum, Wiener Konzerthaus, Bunkamura Orchard Hall in Tokyo, Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory.

As a soloist he is regularly invited to perform with renown orchestras: Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Orchestre National de France, Czech Philharmonic, Sinfonia Varsovia and Saint-Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra. Starting his career at a very young age he had the chance to work with the legendary conductors – Carlo-Maria Giulini, Claudio Abbado, Bernard Haitink, Kurt Masur. Nowadays, Nicolas performs with Myung-Whun Chung, Alain Altinoglu, Pablo Heras Casado, Mikko Franck, Fabien Gabel.

Today Nicolas is one of the most demanded partners for chamber music – he shared the stage with such musicians as the pianists Bertrand Chamayou, Nikolai Lugansky; violinists Renaud Capuçon, Svetlin Roussev; violist Antoine Tamestit; Modigliani, Ébène, and Chiaroscuro quartets.

His encounter with Nikolaus Harnoncourt and Sir Roger Norrington was to prove a shock to his musical life and naturally led him to take an interest in historical instruments and to constantly seek greater authenticity in his historically informed interpretations. Nicolas has recently appeared as soloist on period instruments with the Musiciens du Louvre-Marc Minkowski and the Concert de la Loge conducted by Julien Chauvin. has also signed a five-year contract with Alpha Classics to record Mozart's complete music for clarinet, including concertante and chamber music using only historical instruments.

Recent performances of Nicolas include his collaboration with Mannheim National Theatre Orchestra with Benjamin Reiners, Istanbul State Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Thomas Rösner, and the ADDA Simfònica and Rune Bergmann at the Auditorio de la Diputación de Alicante. His last season's highlights featured a solo recital at the prestigious Festival de Radio France in Montpellier, chamber music concerts with renowned artists such as Martha Argerich, Renaud Capuçon, Alain Altinoglu, Gérard Caussé and Edgard Moreau, as well as performances at the esteemed French festivals in Colmar and Saint-Jean-de-Luz and Les coups de Cœur in Château de Chantilly.

Looking ahead to the 2024/25 season, Nicolas embarks on a Japanese tour, performs Mozart's Clarinet Concerto at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, gives recitals in Seoul with pianist Yeol Eum Son and flutist Sung-hyun Cho, performs in Singapore, and makes his debut at La Fenice in Venice. The following season, he tours with the Chiaroscuro Quartet, including performances at the Wiener Konzerthaus and Wigmore Hall. In 2025/26, he premieres the Clarinet Concerto by Finnish composer Sauli Zinovjev with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France under the baton of François Leleux.

His wide-ranging and eclectic discography covers all aspects of the clarinet repertoire – from early works on period instruments to the most radical contemporary repertoire. Every one of his albums has been highly acclaimed and has won major French awards. Recently, Nicolas signed a five-year contract with Alpha Classics to record Mozart's complete music for clarinet, including concertante and chamber music, using only historical instruments. His latest CD featuring Brahms Sonatas on the Dolce Volta label was awarded a Diapason d'Or and received 5 stars from Classica magazine.

Nicolas Baldeyrou graduated from the CNSMD of Paris (class of Michel Arrignon, Jérôme Julien-Laferrière and Jean-Noël Crocq for bass clarinet). He has held the clarinet chair at the CNSM in Lyon since 2007 and has been visiting professor at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland since 2019. He is also heavily involved in research and development for the famous wind instrument manufacturer Buffet Crampon, of which he has been an ambassador and tester since 2006. Nicolas is also a Vandoren artist.