About us
Parnassus Ensemble is a flexible early music collective bringing together some of Europe’s finest young historically informed musicians. The group takes its name from Johann Joseph Fux’s Gradus ad Parnassum (1725), a seminal treatise on counterpoint revered by composers such as J.S. Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, and Haydn.
Founded in 2022 by Oscar Holch, Xenia Gogu, and Victor García García, the ensemble grew out of collaborations on leading young artist programmes across the UK and Europe and was established with the aim of creating a dynamic network where early music practitioners can exchange ideas, share research, and contribute to the ongoing evolution of historically informed performance. Central to their artistic approach is a commitment to inhabiting the performative mindset of musicians of the past, while embracing the diverse musical personalities of its members.
The ensemble made its debut at St Martin-in-the-Fields, London, in March 2022. Later that year, in August, they were selected for the International Young Artist’s Platform at the Laus Polyphoniae Festival at AMUZ in Antwerp. They have also appeared twice at Festival Impulso on La Palma (Canary Islands), a socially driven chamber music festival dedicated to bringing music to underserved communities.
In May 2026, they make their UK festival debut at Purbeck Art Weeks with an interdisciplinary project supported by the Continuo Foundation and the John Booth Charitable Foundation.
Oscar Holch
British-German musician Oscar Holch, leads an eclectic and diverse musical life as a chamber musician, orchestral player and conductor performing on modern and historical instruments.
As a conductor he has conducted the BBC SSO and as an assistant with the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestra, he has worked with Sir John Eliot Gardiner on a European Tour of Bach‘s B minor Mass (2023) and with Dinis Sousa on a Beethoven Symphonic Cycle in Paris and London (2024).
He appears as a guest principal with leading ensembles such as Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Orchestra of the 18th Century and English Baroque Soloists.