It was in 1995 that Thomas Hengelbrock brought together a group of outstanding musicians to create a new ensemble. Their aim was to perform music on the basis of historically informed performance practice, while not limiting themselves exclusively to the field of early music: works from the early Baroque to the modern period are performed on period instruments in keeping with the historical background and the date of their composition. When performed in their original guise, operas by Mozart, Bizet, Verdi and even Wagner have surprised public and press alike: in 2013, the Balthasar Neumann Choir and Ensemble, conducted by Thomas Hengelbrock, presented a sensational series of concert performances of Parsifal in Dortmund, Essen and Madrid.

The orchestra regularly appears at the Baden-Baden Festspielhaus, the Paris Opéra, the Teatro Real in Madrid, the Dortmund Konzerthaus, the Essen Philharmonie and the Megaron in Athens. Honours and awards collected by the Balthasar Neumann Choir and Ensemble include the Culture Prize of the Region of Baden-Württemberg, several Echo Klassik Awards and a Gramophone Award.