Apollo’s Fire
An International Baroque Orchestra at Home in Northeast Ohio

A GRAMMY®-winning orchestra, Apollo’s Fire has performed sold-out concerts at Carnegie Hall, the BBC Proms, the Royal Theatre of Madrid, the Tanglewood Festival, the Metropolitan Museum of Art… and more! But what Apollo’s Fire musicians love most is bringing world-class performances to your doorstep – in a continuous “tour” of Northeast Ohio neighborhoods.

Founding Artistic Director Jeannette Sorrell is praised for her “inspired leadership” (THE INDEPENDENT, London) and “revelatory performances” (OPERA NEWS). Apollo’s Fire is dedicated to reviving the true spirit of baroque performances – not only with period instruments, but with the emotional impact the music was meant to convey.

Come and see why Apollo’s Fire has one of the largest baroque audiences in the country!

See AF’s full bio below.

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FROM THE PRESS

“First rate… rendered with consummate skill and artistry…”
–NEW YORK TIMES

“Electrified and sparkling.
If this concert didn’t shake your rafters, then nothing will.”
–SARASOTA HERALD TRIBUNE

“Revelatory and convivially theatrical… first class”
–BBC MUSIC MAGAZINE

“This was as exciting as Baroque music gets….
a barnstorming conclusion to an arresting musical evening.”
–CHICAGO CLASSICAL REVIEW

“Dramatic tautness tempered by musical finesse and elegant refinement.”
–GRAMOPHONE

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APOLLO’S FIRE

GRAMMY®-winning ensemble Apollo’s Fire is praised as “the USA’s hottest baroque band” (Classical Music Magazine, UK). Led by award-winning harpsichordist and conductor Jeannette Sorrell, the period-instrument orchestra is dedicated to the baroque concept of moving the passions of the listeners.
 
As America’s most active touring baroque orchestra, Apollo’s Fire has performed seven European tours including sold-out concerts at the BBC Proms in London, the Aldeburgh Festival (UK), Madrid’s Royal Theatre, St. Martin-in-the-Fields, and Bordeaux’s Grand Théàtre de l’Opéra; with concerts at Heidelberg Spring Festival, the Irish National Concert Hall (Dublin), the Irish National Opera House (Wexford), and venues in Germany, France, Italy, Austria, and Portugal. The ensemble has had many live radio broadcasts across Europe. AF’s 2026 London residency at St. Martin-in-the-Fields garnered a 5-star review in The Arts Desk, hailed by the critic as “a unique and memorable event that quickened the mind and ravished the ear… a magical mix. The orchestra moved seamlessly between solemn, sacred gravitas and rapturous festive excitement… a banquet to relish and remember.”
 
North American tour engagements include regular appearances at Carnegie Hall and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City; and the Tanglewood, Ravinia, and Caramoor festivals; as well as performing at the Boston Early Music Festival series, the Library of Congress, the Aspen Music Festival, and major venues in Toronto, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Apollo’s Singers have twice performed with the New York Philharmonic under the baton of Jeannette Sorrell, receiving rave reviews.
 
With over 24 million views of its YouTube videos, Apollo’s Fire is one of the most popular baroque orchestras in the world online. At home in Cleveland and Chicago, Apollo’s Fire frequently enjoys sold-out performances for its subscription series, which has drawn national attention for creative programming.
 
Apollo’s Fire has released 34 commercial CDs and won a GRAMMY® award in 2019 for the album Songs of Orpheus with tenor Karim Sulayman. AF’s recordings of the Bach St. John Passion, Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, and the Monteverdi Vespers have been chosen as best in the field by the Sunday Times of London (2020 and 2021) and BBC Magazine (2022). Thirteen of the ensemble’s CD releases have become best-sellers on the classical Billboard chart, including Bach’s Coffeehouse (Billboard Classical #1), Vivaldi’s Four Seasons (Billboard Classical #2), the Monteverdi Vespers, Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos & Harpsichord Concertos, (Billboard Classical Top 5), a disc of Handel arias with soprano Amanda Forsythe titled “The Power of Love” (Billboard Classical #3), and Jeannette Sorrell’s six multicultural programs: Come to the River – An Early American Gathering (Billboard Classical Top 10); Sacrum Mysterium – A Celtic Christmas Vespers; Sugarloaf Mountain – An Appalachian Gathering (Billboard Classical Top 5); Sephardic Journey – Wanderings of the Spanish Jews (Billboard World Music Chart #2 and Billboard Classical #5); Christmas on Sugarloaf Mountain (Billboard #3), and O Jerusalem! – City of Three Faiths.

Download AF’s Bio (June 2026 – long, medium, & short versions included) PDF | DOC

PLEASE DO NOT EDIT THESE BIOS. If none of these 3 lengths fits your needs, please contact Apollo’s Fire to obtain an alternate version.

Artistic Philosophy

Music is a form of communication – a language that resonates with people in an emotional and spiritual way, touching people in a way that words cannot. The treatises from the 17th and 18th centuries all talk about “Affekt” – the emotional character of the music. The performer’s role was to evoke a particular Affekt or emotional state in the listeners – whether that be joy or contemplation or rage or despair or triumph. The baroque performer used every possible means to cast his emotional spell on the audience – rhetoric, gesture, harmony. Apollo’s Fire is a collection of artists who believe passionately that our job is to communicate – to take the listeners with us on an emotional journey. If, at the end of two hours, the audience is moved to tears, or joy, or laughter, or prayer, then we have done a good night’s work.

“The U.S.A.’s hottest baroque band.”
–CLASSICAL MUSIC MAGAZINE

“Led by a brilliant harpsichordist, Jeannette Sorrell, the ensemble exudes stylish energy – a blend of scholarship and visceral intensity.”
–GRAMOPHONE

“Sorrell and her dazzling period band… are incandescent.”
–THE SUNDAY TIMES, London