Julio Caballero and the Endless Resources of the Grand Siècle

At the helm of El Gran Teatro del Mundo, Julio Caballero has, for the past ten years, shaped a distinctive aesthetic centred on the French repertoire of the seventeenth century—born of an original return to the sources, meticulous work on declamation, and a pronounced taste for theatricality. From Bern to Madrid, from the Lullists to Rameau: this is the story of an ensemble that makes each project an informed yet free reinterpretation of the codes of the Grand Siècle and beyond.

“This repertoire was challenging at first, and we had to work incredibly hard: getting a recorder, a violin and an oboe to blend as one requires a great deal of discipline and rehearsal. Now, it feels as though we’ve developed a kind of telepathy!” © May Zircus

Founded in Bern by harpsichordist Julio Caballero, oboist Miriam Jorde, and gambist and cellist Bruno Hurtado, El Gran Teatro del Mundo has established itself over the past decade as one of Europe’s most acclaimed young Baroque ensembles. Winner of the 2019 Cambridge Early Music Prize and honoured with a “Choc” award from Classica for the album La vida es sueño in 2023, the group develops—through in-depth research into primary sources—a personal and captivating interpretation of the French Grand Siècle, with a focus on its European influences. Each project extends this approach, staying as close as possible to the score, the text, and the delivery.

Back to the sources

Julio Caballero and his co-founders, Miriam Jorde (oboe) and Bruno Hurtado (cello, basse de violon, and viola da gamba), met while they were students at the Bern University of the Arts in Switzerland, driven by the desire to bring their own perspective to a repertoire they felt was neglected outside France and possessed a largely untapped potential. As Julio is quick to point out, “Not out of a desire to reinvent French Baroque—which he would consider pretentious—but rather in a quest for a personal interpretation, born of a study of primary sources and of what the music itself seems to demand of them on a human and emotional level—principles that still guide their work today.”

He attributes to his mother (who used to play him a recording of Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos) the awakening of his interest in Baroque music: “I still remember the version, the one by the Freiburger Barockorchester!” he exclaims, reliving his enthusiasm. He immediately felt an affinity with this repertoire, which led him to the harpsichord and to the possibilities it offers for ensemble playing, a fundamental pillar of the Baroque orchestra. Faced with the initial opposition of both his piano teacher and his family, he resolved, as a teenager, to secretly take harpsichord lessons in order to pursue his goal. His determination eventually convinced his parents, who fully supported his move to Switzerland to specialise in early music, first in Bern and then at the Schola Cantorum in Basel.