Inspired by »Le Concert Spirituel«, the first public concert cycle outside the court of Versailles in Paris starting in 1725, Hervé Niquet founded his eponymous ensemble of choir and orchestra in 1987. In Paris, they are one of the most active exponents of early music and regularly perform at prominent venues such as the Salle Pleyel, the Paris Philharmonie, the Théâtre du Châtelet and the Palace of Versailles. The ensemble also appears internationally, for example at BOZAR in Brussels, Wigmore Hall, the Barbican Centre and the Royal Albert Hall in London, the Auditorio Nacional in Madrid and the Warsaw Philharmonic. As resident orchestra at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, they are also a key player in French musical life and were therefore actively involved in the celebrations to mark the 400th anniversary of the birth of national poet Molière.

Le Concert Spirituel specialises in the performance of sacred music from both the Baroque and Romantic periods and, together with the Palazzetto Bru Zane - Centre de musique romantique française, also brings to light a lyrical heritage that has been unjustly forgotten. They have received prestigious awards for these discoveries: the Grand Prix du Disque of the Académie Charles Cros 2010 for André-Ernest-Modest Grétry's »Andromaque«, the Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik 2011 for André Cardinal Destouches' »Callirhoé«, Jean-Baptiste Lully's »Proserpine«, André Campras' »Le Carnaval de Venise« and the Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik 2017 for Lully's »Persée« in the 1770 version.

Le Concert Spirituel's projects in the 2023/24 season include Lully and Moliere's ballet comedy »Le Mariage forcé« in Avignon, Sanssouci, Neuilly-sur-Seine and Sablé-sur-Sarthe, Fauré's Requiem in Brussels and London and the opera »Don Quichotte chez la Duchesse« by Joseph Bodin de Boismortier staged in Versailles. In Paris, the ensemble presented Couperin's »Leçons de Ténèbres« and »Iphigénie en Tauride« by Henry Desmarest and Campra, among others.

The training and development of young musicians is also an important part of the work of Hervé Niquet and Le Concert Spirituel, for example through their partnership with the Conservatoire à rayonnement régional de Paris; young instrumentalists and singers are included in their productions every season.

The multi-award-winning ensemble has consistently released outstanding recordings on Alpha Classics since June 2015.