Founded in 2007 by a group of passionate young musicians led by viola da gamba player Amit Tiefenbrunn, the Barrocade ensemble is now one of the most outstanding ensembles on the Israeli musical scene. Barrocade has been appearing in all the major concert halls in Israel, among them the prestigious Tel-Aviv Museum, where it gives regular series of concerts. It has also participated in all of Israel’s major festivals, including the Israel Festival. Lead violinist Shlomit Sivan is the group’s general manager.
The ensemble members, all graduates of leading European academies, specialize in early music, and play period instruments. The ensemble’s string instruments were built by its music director Amit Tiefenbrunn, and the bows by lute player Eitan Hoffer. Some of Israel’s best musicians play with the ensemble.
Barrocade normally plays without a conductor, after the custom of the Baroque era, but collaborates with international conductors in performing large Baroque pieces such as oratorios and operas. The ensemble is famous for its rich sound that is owed to its large and varied basso continuo section. Over the years, Barrocade has collaborated with many international musicians. Among them were conductors Philip Picket, David Stern, Matthew Halls and Shalev Ad-El; violinists Patrick Cohen-Akenine and Kati Debretzeni; and singers Marten Engeltjes, Marek Rzebka, Markus Ullmann and Robert Sellier. For already more than ten years, the ensemble regularly collaborates with the Estonian conductor and violinist Andres Mustonen, and has performed under his baton in Israel but also in Estonia, Latvia and Russia. Together with leading Estonian choirs, they have performed works by Vivaldi and Bach, with noteworthy success.
From 2019, Baroccada regularly participates in Baroque-era operas at the Israeli Opera.
