Ensemble intercontemporain is a French ensemble of soloists who excel in performing contemporary ‘academic’ music of the 20th and the 21st centuries. In 1976, composer and conductor Pierre Boulez founded the Ensemble intercontemporain in Paris with the support of Michel Guy (who was Minister of Culture at the time) and the collaboration of Nicholas Snowman.
Resident of the Philharmonie de Paris, the Ensemble performs and records in France and abroad, taking part in major festivals worldwide. Their concerts take place at major venues around the globe, including the Carnegie Hall (New York), Royal Festival Hall and Royal Albert Hall (London), the Berliner Philharmonie, the Wiener Konzerthaus (Vienna), Salle Pleyel and Opéra de Paris (Paris), La Scala (Milan), Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), Liceu (Barcelona).
Since its inception, the Ensemble intercontemporain has given the world premières of more than 200 contemporary works. Their extensive discography includes the recordings of the music by Béla Bartók, Alban Berg, Luciano Berio, Sir Harrison Birtwistle, Pierre Boulez, Edgard Varèse, Anton Webern, Elliott Carter, Iannis Xenakis, György Kurtág, György Ligeti, Olivier Messiaen, Luigi Nono, Emmanuel Nunes, Hèctor Parra, Alberto Posadas, Igor Stravinsky, Luca Francesconi, Unsuk Chin, Arnold Schoenberg and other composers of the 20th and the 21st centuries. With over 60 concerts presented each season in France and abroad, the Ensemble intercontemporain plays a major role in promoting contemporary music worldwide.