Christopher Hogwood founded the Academy of Ancient Music in 1973 and is one of the pioneers of historical performance practice as a harpsichordist conductor. His interpretations of the Baroque and Classical opera and concert literature have brought him international acclaim. The Academy of Ancient Music has taken as its goal the performance of the works of the Baroque and Classical eras on historic instruments. The ensemble, which has a varying amount of performers, boasts a number of outstanding specialists for historical performance practice.