Founded in 2011 by conductor Claire Gibault, the Paris Mozart Orchestra (PMO) is a unique artistic collective – committed, daring and united in its purpose. Through its demanding and innovative programmes, the PMO champions both classical and contemporary music while fostering dialogue between the arts in a spirit of openness and generosity.
Ever attentive to all audiences and constantly exploring new horizons, the PMO is an orchestra like no other.
While at home in prestigious concert halls and festivals, the PMO easily performs in more unconventional settings like schools, hospitals, and prisons. A significant part of its activity is dedicated to educational and community projects, notably through Orchestre au Bahut, the artistic and cultural education initiative that won the “La France s’engage” award in 2016.
To be a member of the orchestra is not only to participate in an exciting musical adventure; it is a way to share in and champion the strongest of humanitarian values, reaching out to the very young, the underprivileged and the alienated. Every year some 50% of the PMO’s activities are devoted to educational or social projects. Meaningful artistic choices are inseparable from a strong social commitment.
Showcasing the orchestra’s outstanding musicians – all of them soloists or chamber players – lies at the very heart of the ensemble’s artistic and human project. In the same spirit, the PMO ensures gender parity among soloists at each of its concerts and is committed to greater inclusion and diversity. In addition to regular collaborations with such artists as soprano Véronique Gens and actress Suliane Brahim of the Comédie-Française, the PMO performs each season with exceptional young talents – in recent seasons pianists Orlando Bass, Isata Kanneh-Mason, Nathalia Milstein and Arielle Beck, and mezzo-soprano Victoire Bunel.
Deeply committed to promoting gender equality in the world of classical music, the PMO and its Music Director Claire Gibault co-founded La Maestra International Competition and Academy for Women Conductors with the Philharmonie de Paris in 2020. As part of this initiative the PMO engages in numerous projects and concerts both at home and abroad supporting the new generation of women conductors.
In recent seasons the Paris Mozart Orchestra has performed in such venues and festivals as the Cité de la musique – Phil harmonie de Paris, the Invalides in Paris, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Festival Internacional Cervantino Mexico, Festival La Folle Journée Nantes, Festival Berlioz and the Festival Messiaen au Pays de la Meije.
The PMO’s recordings include Soudain dans la forêt profonde by Fabio Vacchi, Pictures of America 2016 with soprano Natalie Dessay for Sony Classical, the audio graphic novel Pygmalion 2018 by illustrator Sandrine Revel for Les Arènes, the podcast hear the smile with clarinetist Carjez Gerretsen and Fraternità, released by Polymnie in February 2026.
Since October 2022 the PMO has been resident in Bourges as part of Bourges, European Capital of Culture 2028, developing an ambitious musical and civic project combining concerts, outreach initiatives and cultural mediation.