PBO regularly joins forces with internationally-celebrated Canadian guest artists, providing performance opportunities for Canadian musicians while exposing West Coast audiences to a spectacular variety of talent. The Orchestra has also toured throughout BC, the northern United States, and across Canada. Their 2019 East Coast Canadian tour with Canadian soprano Karina Gauvin culminated in a critically acclaimed album, Nuit Blanches, released by Atma Classique. 

Alex has appeared on more than 100 recordings, including the Juno-award-winning album “Prima Donna” with Karina Gauvin and Arion Baroque orchestra. His latest album series “The Art of Improvisation” (Volume 1: A Prayer for Peace; Volume 2: Ad libitum; and Volume 3: Canavian Variations, released on Redshift, 2024) unites his passions for both baroque music and improvisation on organ, harpsichord, and piano.

The company collaborates closely with numerous musical ensembles to create original productions or repertoire works. Harpsichord in Concert, Les Boréades de Montréal, Toronto Masque Theatre, Nouvel Opéra, Les idées heureuses and the Opéra de Montréal are among the valuable collaborators of Les Jardins Chorégraphiques. The company is also invited to several festivals, including the Montreal Baroque Festival, the Saint-Riquier Festival (France) and Early Music Alberta. Les Jardins Chorégraphiques has, among other things, created the world premiere of Lully’s Ballet Royal’s Impatience , Rebel’s Les Élémens , Handel’s Apollo and Daphne and Grétry’s Zémir et Azor , as well as original creations such as Les Indes Galantes or Les Automates de Topkapi and La Veuve Rebel .

The co-artistic directors continually seek to renew their approach to ancient dance and do not hesitate to create bold projects, resolutely contemporary in their treatment and accessible to all. The shows Écoute comme je danse and De la Pavane au Swing reflect this desire to innovate, as does the astonishing young audience show Viva les quatre saisons – une abeille en mission . Les Jardins Chorégraphiques have also launched into the production of digital works. Triptyque 19 is their first short film in collaboration with Les Boréades de Montréal. Other new projects are coming soon!

For over 20 years she directed, choreographed or danced with many groups in Canada, the United States and Europe. She was invited in many festivals: the Festival of ideas (Edmonton), Orford Festival, the Boston Early Music Festival, (Lully’s Psyché), the Vancouver Early Music Festival, the New Zealand Chamber Music Festival, the Festival de Lanvellec in France, the Festival Musicale Estense in Modena (Italy), and at The International Baroque Festival in Lamèque. For the past six years she has directed and choreographed the finale of the Festival Montréal Baroque.

She has choreographed all of Purcell stage works for the Toronto Masque Theatre, and has created Mozart a Milano (2006) and Purcell’s The Fairy Queen (2009) which were both nominated for the Opus Prize best performance of the year.

She has also gained a reputation as a stage director for many opera productions: Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore and Offenbach’s Tales of Hoffmann for Youth and Music Canada; Bizet’s Carmen for the Opera-Theatre in Rimouski; Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas for Appolo’s Fire in Cleveland;  Rossini et ses muses, le Grand Dîner, Visibilia (Monteverdi), and La Belle Danse for L’opéra de Montréal; and Rameau’s Pygmalion for Le Nouvel Opéra and the Vancouver Early Music Festival.

At the University of Montreal opera division she has directed Handel’s Giulio Cesare, Strauss’ Zigeunerbaron and Fledermaus, Monteverdi’s L’Incoronazione di Poppea, Purcell’s The Fairy Queen, and Campra’s Les fêtes vévitiennes and L’Europe Galante. For McGill University she has directed Monteverdi’s Il Ritorno d’Ullisse in Patria and Lully-Molière’s Les jeux de l’Amour, and choreographed Rameau’s Les Indes Galantes.

Ms Lacoursière is a Professor of gesture and baroque dance at the University of Montreal, and also taught at Université du Québec à Montréal, Stanford University in California, Indiana University, the University of Alberta and the University of Sackville in New Brunswick. She created Lully’s Le Ballet de l’Impatience which premiered at the Festival Montréal Baroque in June 2011.

While growing up, Cook and his grandfather observed and discussed the traditional art forms of their Kwa’kwa’ka’wakw heritage. More specifically drawn to the ceremonial masks and the art of the potlatch. Cook holds chieftainships from his maternal side and his paternal side. From his father’s side he is from the Gigalgam (The First Ones). Making the Thunderbird (Kwanusila) the crest of the “Namgis (Nimpkish) tribe. From his mother’s side, he is from the Seagull (Hamatam) of the Ma’amtagila (Matilpi Village) tribe.

In 1991, Rande Cook moved to Victoria B.C. to attend high school. Throughout this time, his passion for the arts started to evolve, as did his skills. Cook worked at perfecting both Indigenous and Western art forms. He found himself consistently drawn to the strong classical form of Northwest Coast art. Cook studied the styles and formlines of the different nations, focusing primarily on the northern tribes of Vancouver Island.

He uses modular synthesis, home built synthesizers and other analog equipment to improvise with the natural vibrations of a certain place and time – via plant bioelectricity, latent electromagnetic radiation, and even the earth’s resonant hum. Trained from childhood in Indian classical music, he uses the system of Indian raga to mold his musical choices for time of day and season. His performances are an effort to bring the listener into the present moment through vibration, space, and connection.

His videos have been viewed over 100 million times and amassed him over 1 million followers online, and he has been featured by The Guardian, LA Times, BBC, Genius, Vice, The Verge, and DJ Mag among others. His recent albums have received editorial support on Spotify’s Music for Plants, Deep Listening, and Lava Lamp playlists. Recent live performances include Art Basel (Miami), MOCA (Los Angeles), New York Botanical Garden, and the Vancouver Art Gallery. Tarun’s ‘Field Trip’ project is an effort to reconnect listeners to the natural environment, especially in urban settings. Audiences assemble in a public park, forage, and then listen to music improvised from the bioelectric impulses of collected plants and mushrooms. Recent field trips include New York City, San Francisco, San Diego, Vancouver, and Toronto. In the fall of 2023 Modern Biology opens the Nobel Prize Museum’s Fungi Exhibition in Stockholm.

Tarun is passionate about protecting wild places and has committed the lion’s share of the proceeds of this project to supporting the natural world.

She has worked as a projection designer on over 100 productions, including SEACHANGE (Miami City Ballet), Falling Out of Time (Carnegie Hall), SANDRA (TheaterWorks Hartford), Elijah Reimagined (Kennedy Center), American Railroad (Rhiannon Giddens & Silkroad Ensemble Tour), King Arthur (Lincoln Center, Juilliard415), Adoration (Beth Morrison Projects & LA Opera), Iphigenie en Tauride (Boston Baroque), L’Orfeo (Cal Performances & UMS Michigan), Fires in the Mirror (Baltimore Center Stage), Malhaar (Walt Disney Concert Hall, LA Master Chorale), Conspirare Christmas (Long Center), Mozart’s Magic Flute (Berlin Opera Academy), Handel’s Alcina (Yale Opera), The Extinctionist (Heartbeat Opera), Tesori’s Fun Home (Yale School of Drama), as well as for recitals, chamber music, and theater at Curtis, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, IU opera, Repertorio Español, PROTOTYPE Festival, Mass MoCA, and others.  

Camilla has produced and directed Song from the Uproar (CT), Talk to Me Like the Rain (NH), La Resurrezione (IN), If This is a Man: music, science, and humanity (IN), an interdisciplinary project and tribute to Italian chemist and author Primo Levi – which included the US Premiere of Ennio Morricone’s Se questo e` un uomo for chamber orchestra, soprano, and reciting voice. Giacomo Carissimi’s music, Pen e tormenti (NH). 

​As an Italian coach & translator, original translations for Carnegie Hall (L’Arpeggiata), Apollo’s Fire, and diction coaching.

As a classical vocalist,  “Cunegonde” Candide, “Celia” As You Like It, and “Drusilla” L’Incoronazione di Poppea. Chorally, she sang with the Yale Schola Cantorum and NY Philharmonic. Instrumental proficiency in piano and harpsichord.