This evening, Sir John Eliot Gardiner will be awarded the honour of “Cavaliere di Gran Croce” of the Order of
“Stella d’Italia”. The honour will be presented to Sir John Eliot by the Ambassador of Italy, Inigo Lambertini, at
an exclusive ceremony at the Embassy of Italy, London, on Thursday 24 November 2022. The ceremony will be
attended by close friends of Sir John Eliot and the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestras and will include
performances from members of the Monteverdi Choir.
“Cavaliere di Gran Croce” of the Order of “Stella d’Italia” is the highest of the five ranks granted by the President
of the Republic of Italy and was awarded to Sir John Eliot for his commitment to promoting Italian music, which
has greatly contributed to the spread of Italian culture both within Italy and internationally.
Sir John Eliot Gardiner’s work as Founder and Artistic Director of the Monteverdi Choir & Orchestras has
marked him out as a key figure both in the early music revival and as a revelatory conductor of an exceptionally
broad range of music. His performances of Italian music have breathed new life into little-known repertoire and
given composers such as Monteverdi their rightful place on international concert and opera stages.
Sir John Eliot Gardiner has performed in many of the most important theatres and festivals in Italy, including Milan’s Teatro alla Scala and the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino. Performance highlights include conducting and co-
directing Monteverdi’s three surviving trilogy of operas in two complete cycles at La Fenice in 2017, as well as his legendary interpretation of Monteverdi’s Vespers of 1610, which has been heard in Perugia, Cremona, Mantua
and Venice.
He has not only brought about a renewed appreciation for Italian culture within Italy but has exported it
internationally at the highest possible level, from Buenos Aires to Berlin, from New York to Moscow. His rare
knowledge and vision of the spectrum of Italian music stretching over 300 years has led to performances of
Verdi’s operas at the Royal Opera House and Covent Garden, shedding new light on well-known repertoire, and
his recording of Verdi’s Requiem was the first to use period instruments.
Sir John Eliot Gardiner awarded the honour of “Cavaliere di Gran Croce” or the Order of “Stella d’Italia”.
