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René Jacobs (born October 30, 1946) is a Belgian (Flemish) musician. He came to fame as a countertenor but in recent years has become renowned as a conductor of Baroque and early Classical opera.

Jacobs was born in Ghent. As a child, he was a chorister at the Cathedral of Ghent. Later he studied classical philology at the University of Gent while continuing to sing in Brussels and in the Hague.

As a conductor, Jacobs regularly works with orchestras and ensembles such as the Concerto Köln, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Akademie Für Alte Musik Berlin, Nederlands Kamerkoor and Rias-Kammerchor for recordings and concert tours, performing sacred music and oratorios.

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Recording of the Week, Beethoven's Leonore from René Jacobs and the Freiburger Barockorchester

6th December 2019

The original 1805 version of Beethoven's only opera is a high-adrenaline experience in the hands of the Belgian conductor and his period-instrument band, with Marlis Petersen in the title-role and Maximilian Schmitt as her imprisoned husband.

Recording of the Week, Mozart's Requiem from René Jacobs

3rd November 2017

The Belgian conductor presents Mozart's late mass in a new version by Pierre-Henri Dutron, which builds on and refines material from the familiar Süssmayr completion.

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