Damien Guillon

Countertenor Damien Guillon has mastered most genres of music for the countertenor voice, including song, orchestral odes, cantatas, and opera. One of the few French singers to perform English repertory, he has sung in larger productions and also leads his own ensemble, Le Banquet Céleste. Guillon was born in Rennes, France, in 1981. His vocal studies began at age nine when he joined La Maîtrise de Bretagne, a children's choir under the direction of Jean-Michel Noel. The program involved not only choral concerts but a comprehensive musical education, including opportunities to perform as a boy soprano in Baroque operas and oratorios. When his voice broke, Guillon felt more comfortable in high registers, and his teachers agreed that he should continue to develop his countertenor voice. In 1998, he entered the vocal program of the Baroque Music Center of Versailles, continuing to sing in choirs and taking lessons with such singers as Howard Crook and Alain Buet. He also took classes in organ and continuo at the Boulogne-Billancourt Conservatory, winning a first prize in those subjects. Guillon rounded off his education at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in Switzerland, studying with Andreas Scholl. Immediately, he began to find important roles, including that of Curtio in Landi's Il Sant'Alessio, an opera that calls for nine countertenors. Guillon founded Le Banquet Céleste ("The Celestial Banquet") in 2009, taking the name from a collection of motets by 17th century composer Daniel Danielis. The following year, he made his recording debut on the Mirare label with a recording of odes and songs by Purcell with countertenor Carlos Mena. He moved to ZigZag Territoires in 2011 for an album of Dowland lute songs that earned the Alfred Deller Prize. Le Banquet Céleste, whose membership comprises seven core singers but can rise as high as 40, took up a residence at the Opéra de Rennes in 2015. Guillon has made appearances under conductors Hervé Niquet, William Christie, and Philippe Herreweghe. Guillon and Le Banquet Céleste made several recordings for the Glossa label, releasing a recording of Girolamo Frescobaldi's Affetti Amorosi in 2018. Then the group moved to Alpha, releasing half a dozen albums there by the early 2020s; these included Purcell: Royal Odes (2022). ~ James Manheim, Rovi