ABOUT
Il Giardino d'Amore & 16 years of Brotherhood in Art
IT START WITH -
An endless passion for music, for voices,
for discovery, for people, for life.
Il Giardino d’Amore comes from an Italian name, which literally means „Garden of Love”. The inspiration for its creation was the philosophy of the orchestra members, to gather among „the circle of friends” to share music with the feeling of deep, joyful and expressive sensitivity, compared to the secret garden, guided by love for art and love for each other.
Il Giardino d’Amore was founded by violinist and conductor Stefan Plewniak during the Bach Festival in Cracow in 2011. At that time he was working with Jordi Savall and “Le Concert de Nations” in Barcelona which was very inspiring in the process of the creation of his own orchestra.
In 2026 the Il Giardino d’Amore orchestra and choir is celebrating it’s 15th year anniversary of development and growth starting by the European tour with the new
program „The Birth of Concerto” performing at the Canaries Festival and Bilbao. Last year orchestra was awarded, winning the „Fryderyk” Award for the Album of the Year. In 2025 the orchestra celebrated also 300 years of the Vivaldi 4 Seasons by recording special album and documentary video in Venice. The orchestra recorded also the album dedicated to Bach Concertos, and performed in the Bach Festival in Leipzig, and Festival „All’Improviso” in Gliwice. The Orchestra played also in the opening and final concert of the new Festival „Break in Classic”. This year is also dedicated to interesting cooperations with italian singers and new projects with Carolina Lippo dedicated to Paisiello Music, and Nicolo Balducci dedicated to Hasse music, and instrumental music with Stefan Plewniak as soloist.
Il Giardino d’Amore was founded by violinist and conductor Stefan Plewniak during the Bach Festival in Cracow. At that time he was working with Jordi Savall and Le Concert des Nations in Barcelona which was very inspiring in the process of the creation of his own orchestra.
In 2024, the orchestra toured Poland and Austria having its debut at the Wiener Konzerthaus in Vienna and the NFM concert hall in Wroclaw. This spring the orchestra released a new album for Warner label Gluck’s – Orfeo and Euridice with Jakub Orliński.
The orchestra promoted the program The New 4 Seasons in Scotland, and recorded new Bach Album.
2023 Orchestra and Choir started with the recording and concerts with Jakub Jozef Orliński, Fatma Said and Elsa Dreisig recording the Gluck’s opera Orfeo and Euridice for the Warner label. The recording followed the series of concerts in Spain and France in the spring among others in Sevilla, Versailles, and Perelada.
This year 2022 Il Giardino d’Amore had opening gala concert of the the Gstaad New Year Festival in Switzerland with Adèle Charvet and Natalia Kawałek. The orchestra is launching it’s own Summer Garden Festival, the anniversary recording, and two concert tours as part of the 10th year anniversary celebration.
2021 Il Giardino d’Amore started by the Spanish concert tour with Jakub Józef Orliński. Following concerts was took place in France, and Poland. The Il Giardino d’Amore
orchestra and choir recorded Leclair opera ballet “Scylla ed Glaucus” for the Versailles label with such great cast as Mathias Vidal, Chiara Skerath, Florie Valliquette, Victor Sicard. The orchestra and choir performed also Monteverdi „Vespers” which will be performed again in 2022, and took part in the „Actus Humanus” Festival in Gdansk performing Vivaldi complete Concerti op.11.
In 2020 Il Giardino d’Amore prepared program with Beethoven Symphony and Piano Concerto no 5 at Gstaad New Year Festival as part of the 250 years anniversary of Beethoven. Orchestra was invited also by Magnetic Festival in Italy, and Dell’Arte Festival in Brazil.
In 2019 Stefan Plewniak in cooperation with Jean Christophe Cassagnes created the program called Baroque & Pop presented for the first time in South of France in the open air concert for 5000 people which will be revived in 2022/2023 in France and Malta.
The orchestra cooperated also with the talented countertenor Filippo Mineccia resulting in the fruitful concert and new projects.
In 2018 Il Giardino started new, inspiring cooperation with the french baroque dance specialist Hubert Hazebroucq, resulting in the US concert tour called Le Roi Dance giving concerts in NYC, Philadelphia, Rochester.
In 2017 the orchestra held their first tour in China with the Handel opera repertoire. The same year Il Giardino d’Amore has recorded new CD with outstanding singers duo – countertenor Jakub Józef Orliński and mezzosoprano Natalia Kawalek. „Handel – Enemies in Love” released in 2018 was chosen as a CD of the week by London The Times, and CD of the Month by Opera Netherlands.
The aim of 2016 was focused in large projects with polish sacred, and dance music. Concert tour in US was dedicated to promote CD ”The Heart of Europe – Corona Regni Poloniae 1500 – 1750” with a monumental music of Gorczycki, Zieleński, Mielczewski released in the fall of 2017.
The fascination with the French baroque music started by the recording of „Cantates & Petits Macarons”, the CD with french cantatas and chamber music in 2013, than presentation of the opera ballet by J.Ph.Rameau – Les Indes Galantes in 2015 and 2016, and representations of another opera by Rameau – Naïs on tour in 2017, leading to the recording of the Leclair opera ballet in 2021.
In 2014 Il Giardino performed in the prestigious concert hall of Mozarteum in Salzburg, as well as was invited to the festival in Oslo, Norway. During their second tour in USA they performed in Carnegie Hall New York and California, where members of Il Giardino led the master class at the Universities of Los Angeles and San Diego.
The first US and Canada tour took place in 2013 one year after orchestra creation, launching the first CD called Amor Sacro Amor Profano for the label Ëvoe Records, and presenting this program as part of the NYC Baroque Celebration Festival, followed by concerts in Toronto, Rochester, Buffalo, and Bedford.
