New fellowship programme gives tour opportunity to young period instrumentalists

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Two period instrument orchestras have announced  their collaboration in a new fellowship project designed to provide young period instrumentalists with a unique chance to gain professional experience on the grand stage of Europe.

Four grantees from Theresia Orchestra will join Il Giardino Armonico on a major tour across Europe, performing Haydn’s Die Jahreszeiten from 3 to 21 September 2023. They are violinists Lucas Bernardo Da Silva, Guillermo Santonja Di Fonzo, Natascha Pichler and cellist Matylda Adamus.  

Theresia Orchestra is an international period instrument orchestra that offers orchestral training and performance opportunities for early-career musicians. It comprises musicians under the age of 28 drawn from European music institutions for performance practice, who receive annual grants to participate in several weeklong residencies a year across Europe under the direction of renowned artists. This latest collaboration sees the four grantees gaining side-by-side experience with Il Giardino Armonico, one of the world’s leading period instrument ensembles, focusing on repertoire from the 17th and 18th centuries.

’This fellowship project exemplifies our commitment to innovation and excellence, nurturing an environment for aspiring instrumentalists to excel and display their musicianship on an international stage,’ said Giovanni Antonini, director of Il Giardino Armonico. ’We look forward to sharing the stage with these exceptional young players and fuel their artistic growth.’

The initiative celebrates the power of collaboration, mentorship, and aims to provide a springboard into the profession for aspiring period instrumentalists. 

’At Theresia, we are entirely dedicated to forwarding our objective of advancing young period instrument players and couldn’t be more excited about such a valuable opportunity for our musicians to gain real-life performance experience,’ said Mario Martinoli, artistic director of Theresia Orchestra.

With stops at  venues in Lucerne, Bonn, Bremen, Wroclaw, Antwerp and Bucharest, three of the performances will be broadcast on national radio in addition to a film recording for MezzoTV.

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