Arte dei Suonatori

Arte dei Suonatori is an internationally recognized Polish Baroque orchestra specializing in historically informed performance practice, using period instruments and historical playing techniques. In 2026, the orchestra took part in the BIS release, Instrumental Theatre of Affects: C.P.E. Bach - Berlin Symphonies, recorded with harpsichordist and conductor Marcin Świątkiewicz. The orchestra was founded in Poznań, Poland, in 1993 by violinists Ewa and Aureliusz Goliński, who brought together a group of young Polish musicians committed to period-instrument performance. What began as a largely Polish ensemble gradually became more international, with regular members joining from across Europe and even from Japan. In 1998, it began organizing a series of early-music events that developed into the Muzyka Dawna - Persona Grata festival, now an established part of Poland's musical calendar. It later helped establish other festivals, including Music in Paradise in Paradyż, the Handel Festival in Toruń, and Midsommar Barok in Copenhagen. Its recording career has included releases on BIS, Alpha, and Channel Classics, with collaborations involving musicians such as Rachel Podger, Reinhard Goebel, and Alexis Kossenko. In 2003, its recording of Vivaldi's La Stravaganza violin concertos won the Gramophone Award for Baroque Recording of the Year. Further recognition followed with a Diapason d'Or for Müthel's Five Keyboard Concertos and, in 2009, the Prelude Classical Music Award for Best Orchestral CD for its recording of Handel's 12 Concerti Grossi, Op. 6. Across more than three decades, the orchestra has developed a repertoire of more than 700 works, mainly from the 17th and 18th centuries, also extending into contemporary music. By its 30th anniversary in the 2023-24 season, it had released 18 albums. Harpsichordist and conductor Marcin Świątkiewicz became an important collaborator in the orchestra's recording projects, directing much of its work devoted to C.P.E. Bach. Its first release in the series, Instrumental Theatre of Affects: C.P.E. Bach - Hamburg Symphonies & Fantasias, was released in April 2024. ~ Prince Iwundu