LA PENSEROSA A.S.B.L
La Penserosa A.S.B.L. is a non-profit organization founded in 2022 to support La Penserosa, historical music consort, and to make early music accessible to audiences of all ages and backgrounds.
Founded by violinist Maia Silberstein and oboist Katarzyna Sokołowska, the organization supports not only the ensemble's artistic work but also its broader educational and social mission: bringing early music to life in today’s world.
At La Penserosa A.S.B.L., we are dedicated to both artistic excellence and social impact. We support talented musicians by providing equitable remuneration and meaningful artistic opportunities. Our mission is to make early music accessible to all, reaching beyond the concert hall to connect with children in schools, patients in hospitals, and residents in retirement or care homes. We believe historical music has the power to resonate deeply with modern audiences, and we strive to ensure it is heard and felt across generations and communities.
OUR MISSION
WHAT WE DO
We bring our mission to life through our performances, and also through a variety of programs. From intimate to grand concerts in traditional settings to creative events in unexpected spaces, we aim to spark curiosity and connection. Our educational outreach includes performances tailored for schools and community groups, along with interactive programs that bring deeper insight into the music, instruments, and cultural context. We also offer lessons, workshops, and masterclasses in historical performance for learners of all ages. Before and after our concerts, we create space for artistic discussion, encouraging audiences to reflect, respond, and engage with the music on a deeper level.
ARTISTIC COLLABORATIONS
Collaboration is at the heart of our artistic vision. We partner with choirs to explore the richness of vocal-instrumental repertoire, and with actors and dancers to create historically inspired or site-specific performances. Our work with visual artists and writers invites audiences to experience early music through a broader artistic lens. These interdisciplinary projects allow us to tell stories in immersive, unexpected ways. By bringing early music into conversation with other art forms, we expand how it is perceived, understood, and felt.
MEET THE FOUNDERS
founder
Maia Silberstein
Violinist Maia Silberstein brings years of experience as a performer, recording artist, and educator in both modern and historical performance. Born in San Francisco, she made her solo debut at 16 with the Sacramento Symphony and went on to earn degrees from the Juilliard School and the Cleveland Institute of Music. After performing with the Sartory String Quartet, she shifted her focus to early music, studying Baroque violin at the Royal Conservatory in Brussels with Sigiswald Kuijken and François Fernandez, supported by grants from the Belgian American Educational Foundation and the Flemish Government.
Maia has performed extensively across Europe, Asia, and the Americas with leading early music ensembles including Ricercar Consort, Les Arts Florissants, La Petite Bande, a nocte temporis, and the Nederlandse Bachvereniging. She is often invited to lead orchestras as concertmaster and appears on numerous acclaimed recordings. A dedicated pedagogue, she has held faculty positions at the Royal Conservatory in Brussels as well as at several Belgian Music Academies. She has led masterclasses in various cities in California. In 2022, Maia founded La Penserosa to create an early music ensemble that blends artistic depth with education, accessibility, and community engagement.
co-founder
Katarzyna Sokołowska
Polish oboist Katarzyna Sokołowska studied at the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in Warsaw and continued her training at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels, supported by scholarships from the Polish Ministry of Culture and the Flemish Government. Her artistic direction shifted after working with Paul Dombrecht, whose approach to historically informed performance inspired her to specialize in Baroque oboe.
Her expertise spans Baroque, Classical, and Romantic oboes, including the oboe da caccia and oboe d’amore. Katarzyna’s passion, artistry, and expertise, especially in historically informed performance, earned her the respect of her peers and made her a much sought-after musician, who has played hundreds of concerts and shared the stage with the leading proponents of the authentic performance movement.
Katarzyna has performed at venues such as the Royal Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, deSingel in Antwerp, and BOZAR in Brussels. She has collaborated with ensembles including La Petite Bande, Il Fondamento, Capella Vocale, Millenium Orchestra, and La Cetra d’Orfeo, and her recordings appear on labels such as Harmonia Mundi, Ricercar, and Accent. Alongside performing, she teaches lessons and masterclasses in Brussels and abroad.