Paul O’Dette has been described as «the clearest case of genius ever to touch his instrument» (Toronto Globe and Mail). One of the most influential figures in his field, O’Dette has helped define the technical and stylistic standards to which twenty-first-century performers of early music aspire.

His performances at the major international festivals in London, Paris, Montpellier, Amsterdam, Utrecht, Bruges, Antwerp, Berlin, Munich, Vienna, Innsbruck, Prague, Bremen, Dresden, Milan, Florence, Geneva, Madrid, Barcelona, Tenerife, Copenhagen, Oslo, Cordoba, St. Petersburg, Moscow, Boston, Los Angeles, Vancouver, Berkeley, Montevideo, Buenos Aires, Melbourne, Tokyo have often been singled out as the highlight of those events. He is a member of the acclaimed continuo ensemble Tragicomedia.

Paul O’Dette has made more than 130 recordings, many of which have been nominated for Gramophone’s “Record of the Year” Award. The Bachelar’s Delight: Lute Music of Daniel Bacheler was nominated for a Grammy last year as “Best Solo Instrumental Recording.” The Complete Lute Music of John Dowland (a 5-Cd set for Harmonia Mundi), was awarded the prestigious “Diapason D’or de l’année”, while The Royal Lewters has received the “Diapason D’or”, a “Choc du Monde de la Musique”, a 5-star rating in Bbc Music Magazine, 5-star rating in Goldberg and a perfect score of 10 from ClassicsToday.com.

In 1997 he led performances of Luigi Rossi’s L’Orfeo at Tanglewood, the Boston Early Music Festival and the Drottningholm Court Theatre in Sweden with Stephen Stubbs. Since 1999 they have co-directed performances of Cavalli’s Ercole Amante in Boston and Utrecht, Provenzale’s La Stellidaura Vendicata in Sweden, Monteverdi’s Orfeo and L’Incoronazione di Poppea for Festival Vancouver, Mattheson’s Boris Godunov. Their recording of Conradi’s Ariadne was nominated for a “Grammy” as best opera recording in 2006. Paul O’Dette has guest conducted Baroque orchestras throughout Europe, America and Canada.

Paul O’Dette has published numerous articles on issues of historical performance practice and co-authored the Dowland entry in the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians.