NATALIA KAWALEK - mezzosoprano An opera singer, born in 1987 in Poland. She graduated at the Frederic Chopin University of Music in Warsaw (class of Professor Izabella Kłosinska) and in Rome at Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia (with Rebecca Berg and Sara Mingardo) as part of the Erasmus exchange programme. Afterwards she continued studies at the University of Music in Vienna under Professor Claudia Visca. In 2012 she won 3rd price and the Audience Price at the International Baroque Opera Competition Pietro Antonio Cesti in Innsbruck (Austria). She is also the winner of 2nd price and many special awards on Internationaler Hilde Zadek Gesangswettbewerb 2013 in Vienna. From saison 2014/2015 she was a member of Junges Ensemble at Theater an der Wien. Her repertoire is very wide, from the music of late renaissance, through baroque operas and chamber music, to contemporary and experimental projects. Her greatest passion however is opera. The most significant recent stage appearences were Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro at Glyndebourne Festival, Carmen in Kammeroper Wien, Virtu in L'incoronazione di Poppea of C. Monteverdi in Theater an der Wien. During last couple of seasons she had chance to colaborate with prominent conductors like Alessandro de Marchi, Andreas Spering, Jean Christoph Spinosi, Mikhail Tatarnikov, Jan T. Adamus and excellent stage directors like Christoph Loy, Klaus Guth, Christiane Lutz, Thorstein Fisher, Jean Renshaw. Next seasons include engagements in Theater an der Wien and Teatr Wielki in Warsaw. Natalia is cooperating regularily with ensembles Il Giardino d’Amore, Cappella Cracoviensis and Ensemble Matheus.

Stefan Plewniak - violinist and conductor, received his training in is hometown, Krakow, where he studied with prof. B. Śliwicka-Wysocka at the Krakow Academy of Music. He continued his studies with prof. I.Strauss in Prague Music Academy, prof. R. Szreder at Maastricht Conservatory and prof F. Fernandez at Conservatoire National Superieur de Musique et de Danse in Paris.

His interest in baroque music was sparked during collaboration with Les Gôuts Reunis ensemble in the Netherlands. Subsequently, he has performed with many significant ensembles and orchestras, such as Kammeroper Köln, Warsaw Polish Radio Orchestra and Amsterdam Symphony Orchestra.

He collaborated with many renowned ensembles as a concertmaster in den Hague, Paris and Salzburg. He also cooperated with leading orchestras in Europe such as William Christie's Les Arts Florissants in Paris and Jordi Savall's Le Concert des Nations in Barcelona.

He is the founder of Il Giardino d'Amore orchestra in Vienna/ Cracow and Capella dell’ Ospedale della Pietà in Venice. In 2016 he founded new symphony orchestra The FeelHarmony.

He appeared as a soloist and leader at many important festivals in Europe, USA and China, among others Oude Muzik Festival Utrecht, Bach Festival Vienna, Tartini Festival Pirano, Styriarte Festival Graz, Early Music Celebration New York. He made his debut as a soloist in Mozarteum Salzburg and New York Carnegie Hall in 2014. Stefan Plewniak regularly presents masterclasses in Oslo, Norway as well as at the University of South California in L.A. and San Diego.

He is specializing in the opera and ballet repertoire.