09-16.06 European Union Baroque Orchestra Residence

The European Union Baroque Orchestra (EUBO) is an orchestra specialising in the performance of Baroque music on historical instruments, made up of young professional musicians from the countries of the European Union. The ensemble was founded in 1985 as a major initiative of the European Year of Music to celebrate the 300th anniversary of three great Baroque musicians: Johann Sebastian Bach, Domenico Scarlatti and George Friederich Handel. A Cultural Ambassador for the European Union, EUBO was founded in Great Britain and funded by the EU: since then more than 600 EUBO musicians have played over 900 concerts in 54 countries around the world. The training programme also includes further training, performing concerts on international tours and recording records. Every year, more than 100 young musicians specialised in historically informed performance practice and graduated from European conservatories gather for a few days to participate in a training course followed by auditions to select the 25 members of the orchestra for six months. The young EUBO members are thus introduced to a professional career, and many of them have subsequently collaborated with prestigious European baroque orchestras such as Les Arts Florissants, The English Concert, Musica Antiqua Köln, The King’s Consort, Concerto Copenaghen, Brandenburg Consort, Academy of Ancient Music and Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra. The orchestra has performed at major European festivals and concert halls, such as the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, St John’s Smith Square in London, the Bachwoche Ansbach festival, and other festivals dedicated to early music in Utrecht, York, Brugge, Valletta and London. International tours have taken EUBO to Japan, the USA, South Africa, as well as Ramallah, the Gaza Strip, Botswana and Soweto. The orchestra is conducted by some of the most eminent specialists in the international baroque music scene, including harpsichordists Lars Ulrik Mortensen (who was also the orchestra’s music director from 2004 to 2019) and Ton Koopman, violinists Andrew Manze, Amandine Beyer, Enrico Onofri, Chiara Banchini, Roy Goodman and Rachel Podger, oboist Alfredo Bernardini, harpist Christina Pluhar and cellist Jaap ter Linden. The activities̀ of the European Union Baroque Orchestra had been at a standstill since 2018, following Brexit and then because of the covid. In full agreement with the historical founders and last managers of the ensemble, and in order to plan the resumption of the orchestràs activities, in November 2022 EUBO moved its headquarters to Italy by the philanthropic and entrepreneurial will̀ of ICONS, a non-profit organisation based in Lodi and a leader in the communication of EU-funded scientific and technological research projects. The relaunch of the EUBO project aims to create a transition in total continuitỳ with the previous musical activities, maintaining as much as possible the organisational and artistic model adopted by the orchestra in the past, meeting several times a year for artistic residencies lasting about a week and concluded by short concert tours. The artistic direction is entrusted to Mario Martinoli, the founder and artistic director of Theresia Orchestra, an international youth ensemble founded in 2012 precisely on the model of EUBO in terms of its training, artistic and organisational structure. EUBO is thus happily integrated into the philanthropic activities of ICONS, an institution that confirms itself as a leading European player in the creation and management of youth orchestras. After hosting the Theresia orchestra in 2018, EUBO’s residency is a real honour and point of arrival for the programming of Risonanze: what is the most important orchestra of young professionals on the international scene brings little Malborghetto to the forefront of the musical chronicles, giving the festival a European breath that matches well with the geographical location of Valcanale and sends a strong message in a delicate historical moment for the whole planet. Maestro, staff and the 20 musicians will stay in hotels in the centre of Malborghetto, thus also bringing an inducement to local restaurants and activities. The section and ensemble rehearsals will take place at Palazzo Veneziano, and some complementary outdoor activities are also planned, which will take the youngsters to discover the area and the resonance firs; guided and by ebike they will reach the Fusine lakes, while an ad hoc excursion is planned on Mount Lussari.