Your Travel Experience with Avellera
Orchestra 1756 & Its Soloists
Experience Vivaldi on period instruments with Orchestra 1756, an ensemble dedicated to the authentic performance of 17th- and 18th-century music. Founded in 2006 by conductor and harpsichordist Konstantin Hiller in Salzburg, the orchestra is the city's first permanent ensemble playing on "original instruments." With a strong focus on the stylistic and rhetorical nuances of Baroque and Classical music, Orchestra 1756 has become a prominent fixture in Salzburg's musical landscape.
Since 2014, Greek violinist Dimitris Karakantas has played a key role in the ensemble’s development as concertmaster, soloist, and director of performances of Vivaldi's "Four Seasons." His artistic vision has contributed significantly to the orchestra’s evolution and repertoire.
The ensemble has collaborated with many renowned artists and performed at prestigious venues around the world. These include the "National Center of Performing Arts Beijing" (with Daniel Kotlinski and Julia Novikova), the "Int. Tartini-Festival Piran" (with Christophe Coin, Sergio Azzolini, Bozena Angelova, Roberto Gonzalez, Sheng-Fang Chiu), and Salzburg's Great Hall of the Mozarteum (with Giulio Carmignola). The group has also performed at Mirabell Palace Salzburg (alongside Vittorio Ghielmi, Christoph Urbanetz, and others), the Mozart Festival in Bratislava, and the "Stars and Rising Stars Festival" with Mojca Erdmann and Vesselina Kasarova. Their appearance at the "Bad Kissinger Sommer" (with Nicolas Spanos and Dimitris Karakantas) was met with critical acclaim, with the press hailing them as "one of the best baroque orchestras of the last 30 years."
Orchestra 1756 has also released several recordings under the Atlantis Resurrexit label, featuring works such as Mozart's "Requiem," Leopold Mozart's "Letters and Trio Sonatas Op.1" (with Peter Simonischek), Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons," and Scarlatti's "Il martirio della St. Cecilia." Many of these releases include first-time recordings of these works.
Since 2008, Orchestra 1756 has made the Karlskirche in Vienna its musical home, regularly performing in this stunning baroque landmark. The Karlskirche concerts have become a defining feature of Vienna's classical music scene, offering audiences an unforgettable experience of historically informed performance.