The Orchester "La Scintilla"

The cultivation of the historical performance practice has been a tradition at the Opera House Zurich since the performance of the Monteverdi Cycle in the seventies. During the following series of Mozart operas, which were directed by Harnoncourt and Ponnelle, further pioneering work was accomplished and the musicians altered their playing techniques according to the latest research on historical performance practices.

In 1996 an independent ensemble was formed by first-class specialized musicians of the Zurich Opera Orchestra and soon obtained an excellent reputation.