The Musicall Compass was formed in 2000 by its director Crispin Lewis with fellow former students of the Royal College of Music and Guildhall School of Music & Drama, to perform Baroque music for voices and instruments.
The Musicall Compass has performed a large repertoire of baroque cantatas, oratorios and operas - as well as contemporary opera - at venues including the Wigmore Hall; the Royal Opera House Linbury Studio Theatre; the Purcell Room; St. John's, Smith Square; St. James', Piccadilly; St. Martin in the Fields; St. Giles' Cripplegate and the Blackheath Halls.
The ensemble performs regularly at the Wigmore Hall, where its debut performance in 2005 was awarded four stars by the Independent, who described it as "..a triumph". Of a recent sell-out production at the Royal Opera House Linbury Studio Theatre, the Times critic said:
" Their light touch and airy élan certainly showcased the sparkle in Purcell's music, right from the first notes of the evening's curtain-raiser. Trumpeters were fearless; Rebecca Dell's drum had a jolly thwack. Down in the continuo division, Lynn Selwood's cello sang out, finger perfect, always eloquent. "
In May 2010 The Musicall Compass visited Yerevan in Armenia, participating in the major European festival 'Perspectives XXI'. The tour included performances in the Komitas Chamber Hall and in the Aram Khachaturian Concert Hall. The repertoire was mainly English music of the 16th and 17th centuries, but also included many works by Armenian composers.