The Chamber Orchestra Of Europe

Acknowledged as "the finest chamber orchestra in the world" (BBC Two Television), the Chamber Orchestra of Europe was founded in 1981 by a group of young musicians graduating from the European Union Youth Orchestra. It was their ambition to continue working together at the highest possible professional level, and of that original group, eighteen remain in the current core membership of about sixty. The members of the COE, selected by the Orchestra itself, pursue parallel careers as international soloists, Leaders and Principals of nationally-based orchestras, as members of eminent chamber groups and as tutors and professors of music. Performances are given regularly in the major cities of Europe and occasionally in the USA and Japan.

The COE has strong links with the Lucerne Festival, the Styriarte Festival in Graz and also with many of the major concert halls in Europe. These include the Philharmonie in Paris, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Baden-Baden Festspielhaus, the Alte Oper in Frankfurt and the Cologne Philharmonie.

Over the years, the COE has performed with many of the world's greatest artists. The Orchestra has developed especially close relationships with Claudio Abbado, Bernard Haitink, Nikolaus Harnoncour, Vladimir Jurowski, Yannick Nézet-Séguin and Sir András Schiff. The Chamber Orchestra of Europe works with all the major recording companies and, in only thirty years, has recorded over 250 works. It has won numerous prizes for its recordings, including three Gramophone Record of the Year awards and two Grammys. The COE was the first Orchestra to create its own label, "COE Records", in association with ASV Records, now distributed by Sanctuary/Universal Music.

The COE receives no public subsidies and is supported by a small number of Friends without whom it could not survive.