On 7 April, the New Scene of the National Theatre in Prague presented the long-awaited premiere of the opera adaptation of Ivan Klíma’s mystery novel The Sufferings of Prince Sternenhoch. Its author, primarily a scenic music composer and musical autodidact Ivan Acher (*1976) had already written music for the book’s theatre adaptation at Divadlo Komedie eleven years ago; … Read more
On 28 and 29 March in St Anna’s Church, České Budějovice, the South Czech Philharmonic presented the world premiere of Concerto for Oboe and Orchestra by the Budějovice-born composer and guitarist Lukáš Sommer (*1984). The solo part was performed by a leading Czech oboist Vilém Veverka. The four-movement concerto was a perfect choice for the Easter time – optimistic, … Read more
On 9 March at the Morat-Institut in Freiburg, ensemble recherche, top-class German contemporary music ensemble, gave world premiere to String trio no. 2 by Czech composer Petr Bakla. In the 2017 piece, the author asks the players to produce “an objective, pure sound”, devoid of any interpretational stereotypes, one he has since long found to be the “most … Read more
“… Impressions and Touches in the Soul…”, this year’s first concert by the Konvergence composers’ association, took place on 5 March in the Church of St Lawrence in Lesser town, Prague. It presented, among others, the premiere of Doteky milosrdenství (The Touches of Mercy), a new piece by a well-known Brno-based composer Pavel Zemek-Novák. The programme also included La Mandragore (Tristan Murail), Ambre … Read more
The South Czech Philharmonic presented Vrstvení (Layering), a new piece by composer and top-class cymbalist Daniel Skála (*1981). It was performed on 21 and 22 February in the church of Saint Anna, České Budějovice, under the direction of Marek Prášil. “The title of the piece refers to the main principle of composition I used here,” Skála said. “Instead of melodies and … Read more
As a part of their 49th season, the Czech Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra Pardubice introduced Little Words, a new song cycle by composer and the orchestra’s former music director Marko Ivanović (*1976). The piece attracted the attention of the Prague Spring festival, too; that is why the audience in the Suk Hall of Pardubice’s Dům hudby on 19 February had a chance … Read more
On 4 January, PKF – Prague Philharmonia gave world premiere to an orchestral version of YIN – Nostalgia and Hope by composer Ondřej Štochl (*1975). Its chamber version for vibraphone and 12 instruments had been premiered 2 years ago in Brno; just like then, the solo part was now played again by the excellent Martin Opršál. The orchestral transcription maintained … Read more
Led by their artistic director Pavel Šnajdr, the Brno Contemporary Orchestra on 31 January in Besední dům, Brno, presented the first of the two concerts commemorating and celebrating the 100th anniversary of the founding of Czechoslovakia. It was named FROM CZECHOSLOVAKIA and the programme consisted of new pieces by Petr Bakla, Luboš Mrkvička and Marián Lejava … Read more
On 31 January in the Smetana Hall of the Municipal House, the Prague Symphony Orchestra FOK gave world premiere to Concerto for oboe and orchestra by Jiří Gemrot (*1057). Just like his Trio for oboe, harp and piano, the composer dedicated it to a leading Czech oboist Vilém Veverka. “The first attribute I would think of is ‘lyrical’,” the … Read more
On 18 January in the St Agnes Convent, violoncellist Petr Nouzovský and accordionist Ladislav Horák gave premiere to Introduction and Tango, a new piece by composer and choirmaster Petr Fiala (*1943). The concert was a part of the chamber series held by the Prague Symphony Orchestra FOK. The two-part composition was written directly for these two leading Czech instrumentalists, … Read more
