ARTISTS

The musicians of the Cappella Andrea Barca are primarily active as globally successful soloists and chamber musicians and are not tied to any orchestras. They were selected personally by Sir András Schiff for the performance of the complete Mozart Piano Concertos at the Mozartwoche Salzburg from 1999 to 2005. Since then, the Cappella Andrea Barca has been a regular guest at the Salzburg Mozartwochen.

Gradually, under the direction of Sir András Schiff, the orchestra widened their scope. Since 1999, they have organized the Omaggio a Palladio Festival at the Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza, (in 2001 with Mozart’s Così fan tutte). The ensemble was also a guest at the Kunstfest Weimar in the years 2004-2007. In addition, they have toured numerous European cities such as Vienna, Innsbruck, Zurich, Basel, Geneva, Athens, Brussels, Luxembourg, Cologne, Essen, Dortmund, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Bremen, Baden-Baden, Budapest and Lisbon. Two tours in the Mozart Year 2006 led Andrea Barca to the USA (New York's Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall and Kennedy Center, Washington). The orchestra performed at important festivals like Beethovenfest Bonn (2008 and 2010), LucerneFestival (2006, 2012 with Bach’s B-flat Minor Mass and 2014 with Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis (with Balthasar Neumann Chorus) and Schubertiade Schwarzenberg (2014 and 2015), Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival and Rheingau Music Festival in 2016. In 2017 it was guest at the Sommets Musicaux de Gstaad Festival.

Sir András Schiff's ambition is to present Cappella Andrea Barca in a way that allows the ensemble to prove themselves in soloist and chamber music formations, which is something that most established orchestras will struggle to achieve. "What I work with as a conductor is an extension of chamber music; the Cappella is a chamber music ensemble of excellent soloists, but above all chamber musicians. There are many string quartet players in this orchestra, and playing the string quartet is the pinnacle of making music." Moreover, Sir András Schiff considers the human and personal component equally important:" There is no place for the egotist. This ensemble is based on friendship, understanding, equality and equal ideals - aesthetic, musical and human."