Founded by conductor Christian Curnyn in 1994, Britain's Early Opera Company focuses on Baroque and Classical-era repertoire, some of it relatively obscure. The group, which attracts top-flight singers and instrumentalists from beyond the realm of early music and deploys them in new ways, has also specialized in the operas of Handel. In 2008, the company made its debut on the Chaconne label, an early music division of Chandos, with a recording of Handel's opera Semele.

That recording earned the Handel Prize in 2008, and the Early Opera Company continues to make a specialty of Handel's operas, performing them in New York as well as at major British venues. It has performed Handel's Orlando at the South Bank Centre Early Music Festival and Partenope at the Linbury Studio Theatre. The company has also collaborated with the Royal Opera in lesser-known works such as Francesco Cavalli's L'Ormindo and Luigi Rossi's L'Orfeo; the latter production was nominated for an Olivier award. In 2009, the company performed at the Lufthansa Baroque Music Festival, giving one of the earliest performances of John Eccles' The Judgment of Paris. The Early Opera Company later made the world premiere recording of that work for Chandos. Other appearances beyond Britain included a performance of Purcell's Dido and Aeneas, as well as one of John Blow's Venus and Adonis; the latter was also broadcast live on the U.S. National Public Radio network. The Early Opera has attracted top-flight singers from Britain and beyond, including baritone Benjamin Appl, soprano Mary Bevan, contralto Hillary Summers, and countertenor Tim Mead. Guest instrumental soloists have included such luminaries as violinist Joshua Bell and keyboardists Sam Haywood and Jonathan Biss. The Early Opera Company has issued several recordings on the Chaconne, Chandos, and Wigmore Live labels, including one of Handel's rarely recorded Amadigi di Gaula in 2022. ~ James Manheim, Rovi