The Agora Orchestra, conducted by Nicolas Ellis, uses music as a tool for sustainable social change while presenting innovative and daring concerts. Its musicians actively participate in its social actions through music.
– Arthur Kaptainis, Gramophone
Founded in 2013 and led by Nicolas Ellis, l’Orchestre de l’Agora (OA) stands out for its resolutely committed artistic vision: using music as a tool for lasting social change while presenting innovative and audacious concerts.
Its musicians, among the most promising young artists in the country, are deeply involved in the orchestra’s social, educational, and environmental initiatives. Together, they form a collective where artistic excellence and social impact reinforce one another.
A JUNO Award winner for the album Viola Borealis with violist Marina Thibeault, and an Opus Prize recipient for “Musical Event of the Year” for the 2022 Gala de la Terre, the OA has consistently combined artistic ambition with collective responsibility. Since its first edition in 2020, the Gala de la Terre has become a major biennial event for the Orchestra, raising more than $500,000 for environmental and humanitarian organizations, while offering an artistic reflection on the major issues of our time.
Over the seasons, the Orchestra has distinguished itself through multidisciplinary productions and bold collaborations: from Jean-Michel Blais to Philippe Brach, from Marie-Nicole Lemieux to Kerson Leong, and with artists such as Charles Richard-Hamelin, Andrew Wan, and Yukari Cousineau. Its close relationship with the Opéra de Montréal has also led to acclaimed projects, including L’Enfant et les sortilèges (Ravel, 2023 and 2025) and L’Incoronazione di Poppea (Monteverdi, 2024).
L’Orchestre de l’Agora is deeply invested in community and healthcare settings through participatory concerts and workshops, performances in care and living environments, and musical mentorship programs.
Between 2013 and 2024, the Orchestra collaborated with Partageons l’Espoir, providing music lessons and mentorship to hundreds of children from underprivileged backgrounds. Since 2024, this program has been taken over by Musique à l’Unisson, with whom we are continuing the collaboration.
Since 2021, the OA has also maintained a unique partnership in Canada with the Montréal Detention Centre (Bordeaux Prison), where its musicians lead monthly concert-workshops for incarcerated individuals, fostering emotional reconnection, well-being, and social reintegration.
The Orchestra also collaborates with Espace Transition and the CHU Sainte-Justine on the design and delivery of the Ateliers de création musicale, an innovative program in which youth facing mental health challenges create a collective musical work alongside the Orchestra’s musicians. This social-innovation initiative highlights the transformative power of music on the well-being, confidence, and sense of belonging of participating youth.
These projects embody our conviction that music can change lives and help build a more just, equitable, and empathetic society.
Nicolas Ellis, Artistic Director, is also Music Director of the Orchestre National de Bretagne and Principal Guest Conductor of Les Violons du Roy. He regularly conducts several ensembles in Canada and Europe;
Since its founding in 2013, the OA has donated more than $513,000 to Canadian environmental and humanitarian organizations.
Since 2019, the Orchestra has presented more than twenty concerts in string orchestra format throughout Quebec, to public and critical acclaim;
Since 2019, the Orchestra has presented more than twenty concerts in string orchestra format throughout Quebec, to public and critical acclaim;
260, boulevard De Maisonneuve Ouest, 2e étage
Montréal, Québec, H2X 1Y9
260 De Maisonneuve Blvd West
2nd floor, Montreal, Quebec
H2X 1Y9
Orchestre de l'Agora | Design Samuel Lalande-Markon, 2025