Biography

EXAUDI is one of the world’s leading vocal ensembles for new music. 

Formed in 2002 and comprising some of the UK’s top ensemble singers and new music soloists, EXAUDI has collaborated with hundreds of composers, from today’s leading figures to tomorrow’s stars, evolving a unique and expanding repertoire that has blazed new trails in contemporary vocal composition. 

EXAUDI’s special affinity is for the radical edges of music both new and old, whether mind-bending medieval rhythm, Renaissance or 21st-century microtonality or experimental aesthetics, championing composers as diverse as Cassandra Miller, Michael Finnissy, Jürg Frey, Catherine Lamb, Evan Johnson and Naomi Pinnock. A strong feature of its programming is the mixing of early and new music in imaginative and arresting combinations: new female perspectives on Gesualdo and the Italian madrigal, or James Weeks’ reimagining of Arcadelt in Book of Flames and Shadows (Winter & Winter, 2022).

“12 musically superb and technically accomplished singers…” 

New York Times

Committed to growing the future of new music, EXAUDI is also strongly involved with the emerging generation of young composers and singers, and regularly takes part in artist development schemes and residencies such as Voix Nouvelles Royaumont and IRCAM Manifeste Academie. EXAUDI has particularly strong links with the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, London, and is an Ensemble-in-Residence at Durham University. The ensemble is a proud signatory to the Keychange initiative, pledging gender-equal programming across its own-promotion activities.

EXAUDI’s many international engagements include Wittener Tage, Darmstadter Ferienkurse, Musica Viva (Munich), Muziekgebouw (Amsterdam), IRCAM (Paris), Festival d’Automne (Paris), Voix Nouvelles (Royaumont), Musica (Strasbourg), MAfestival (Bruges), CDMC (Madrid), Milano Musica (Milan/Turin), Fundaciò BBVA (Bilbao) and L’Auditori (Barcelona). The ensemble has also collaborated with many leading ensembles including musikFabrik, Ensemble Modern, L’Instant Donné, London Sinfonietta, BCMG, Talea (NY), Linea, Helsinki Philharmonic and Ensemble InterContemporain. 

EXAUDI has appeared at many leading UK venues and festivals, including BBC Proms, Aldeburgh, Sound (Aberdeen), Spitalfields, Manchester International Festival and hcmf//, Wigmore Hall, Café OTO, Kings Place and South Bank. EXAUDI broadcasts regularly on BBC Radio 3 and European radio stations, and has released 20 critically acclaimed recordings on the Winter&Winter, Kairos, NMC, ÆON, Métier, Mode, Confront and HCR labels. 

“…deftly convincing performances of dizzyingly complex works.” 

The Guardian