Harry Bicket

Harry Bicket (born 1961, Liverpool, England) is a British conductor, harpsichordist and organist.

Bicket was educated at Radley College, Christ Church, Oxford, where he was organ scholar, and the Royal College of Music. Before Oxford he was organ scholar at St George's Chapel, Windsor, and afterwards he was sub-organist at Westminster Abbey, during which time he performed at the wedding of Sarah Ferguson and Prince Andrew.

As a conductor, Bicket became known when he stood in as a replacement to conduct Peter Sellars’ production of Handel's opera Theodora with Dawn Upshaw, Lorraine Hunt Lieberson and David Daniels, at the Glyndebourne Festival in 1996. He has since conducted in many other opera houses and concert halls. He has become especially associated with the baroque and classical repertoire. In 2003, Bicket was conductor for the revival of Theodora at Glyndebourne.

In 2003, Bicket made his Covent Garden debut conducting Handel's Orlando with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment (OAE), a production that was nominated for "Best New Opera Production" in the 2004 Laurence Olivier Awards. Bicket's engagements with the OAE have also included Handel's Theodora and Rodelinda for the Glyndebourne Festival Opera. In 2005, Bicket made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera conducting Rodelinda with Renée Fleming.

His recordings include performances conducting the OAE of recitals by Renée Fleming and Lorraine Hunt Lieberson.

In October 2006, Bicket was named the next director of The English Concert, effective as of September 2007. He first worked with the ensemble as a harpsichordist in 1984. This position is his first orchestral directorship. He lives in London.

Selected reviews

• Andrew Clements, "Meandering meaning". The Guardian, 16 May 2000 (Radamisto).
• Fiona Maddocks, "So, Sigmund, why do children suffer?". The Observer, 21 May 2000 (Radamisto).
• Tim Ashley, "And Mozart made five". The Guardian, 30 May 2000 ( The Philosopher's Stone).
• Erica Jeal, "Le Nozze di Figaro". The Guardian, 10 October 2001 (Glyndebourne Touring Opera production).
• Fiona Maddocks, "Who cares where the pin is anyway?" The Observer, 18 November 2001 (Le Nozze di Figaro, Glyndebourne Touring Opera production).
• Rian Evans, "La Clemenza di Tito". The Guardian, 22 February 2002 (Welsh National Opera production).
• Tom Service, "Xerxes". The Guardian, 11 November 2002 (English National Opera production).

External links

• New York Philharmonic brief biography on Harry Bicket, December 2006.
• Biography of Harry Bicket on the Askonas Holt website
• Stephen Clarke, 'Becoming Conductors', Lusimus: The Radley Newsletter Issue 8 (January 2004)