The Sonatori de la Gioiosa Marca (Musicians of the joyous Marca) was founded in 1983 in Treviso (Marca Gioiosa et Amorosa), a city that has been part of the Marca borderland of the Venetian republic since the fifteenth century. They are considered one of the most select Italian ensembles in the field of Baroque performance practice. The Sonatori perfected their talents with leading performers of early music of the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, London's Royal College of Music, and Geneva's Centre de Musique Ancienne. Their repertoire ranges from Gabrieli to Mozart, with special emphasis on the great Venetian tradition of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Their interpretations of the Cavalli opera La Calisto, Monteverdi Orfeo, II Ritomo d'UIisse and Stradella's San Giovanni Battista in Venice, Mantua and at the Festival of Ancient Music in Innsbruck have been released on compact disc. Their interest has been focused on composers such as Fontana, Castello, Marini, Legrenzi and Vivaldi. The Ensemble has participated in important European festivals, playing in Paris, Vienna, Brussels, Prague, Lisbon, Barcelona, Geneva, Bern, Lugano, Klagenfurt, York, Dresden, Frankfurt, Berlin and the major Italian cities. Active in teaching in Italy and Germany, the Sonatori organize a sacred vocal music festival in Treviso each year, where the participants are soloists and groups of international standing.