English Baroque Soloists

The English Baroque Soloists developed from the Monteverdi Orchestra, which was formed by John Eliot Gardiner in 1968.

In the late 1970s the orchestra transitioned to period instruments and became the English Baroque Soloists.

The first concert under the new name was in 1977 at the Innsbruck Festival of Early Music, although the orchestra was not officially formed until 1978.

In 1990 Gardiner formed the Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique, another period instrument ensemble.

The Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique specialises in a later repertoire than that of the English Baroque Soloists, but shares some players.