Orchestre national des Pays de la Loire

France's Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire lives up to its "national" designation, with an international reputation and a substantial catalog of recordings dating back to its early days. Some of its music directors have focused on French music, while others, hailing from outside France, have cultivated a broader repertory. The Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire (the Pays de la Loire are the "lands of the Loire river" in western France) was founded in 1971. It took shape in the merger of two regional ensembles, the orchestra of the Opéra de Nantes and that of the So...