Life is like a colourful carnival, a fantastic journey, and mankind finally embraces the entire universe. Members of three generations of Czech composers constitute three milestones on the journey to Czech modernism: from the great classicist Antonín Dvořák to his son-in-law, the symbolist Josef Suk, and on to his friend, the fiery dramatist Leoš Janáček. Dvořák wrote his three concert overtures as a depiction of human life. Among them, Carnival Overture is less a depiction of unbridled merrymaking than of the unpredictability of fate and of a varied succession of events. In his Fantasy, Suk freed himself from classical models and set out on the path towards his great, emotionally vibrant symphonic compositions. Janáček’s Glagolitic Mass was one of his last major works, and its premiere at the functionalist pavilion in Brno seemingly linked it to youthful Czechoslovakia’s distant future.

This concert is a major part of our celebrations of the current Year of Czech Music. Other than Bedřich Smetana and Bohuslav Martinů, who will be given space in other concerts at this year’s festival, the programme includes works by those Czech composers who are most famous around the world and whose works have become a permanent part of many orchestras’ repertoires. To that we add a stellar lineup of performers with conductor Jakub Hrůša, violinist Julia Fischer, the Czech Philharmonic, and the Prague Philharmonic Choir along with Corinne Winters, Bella Adamova, Davit Butt Philip, Brindley Sherratt as the vocal protagonists in Janáček’s Glagolitic Mass. This tribute to Czech musical heritage is eagerly anticipated.

“The Czech Philharmonic now played one of Dvořák’s finest symphonies with true passion, with a wide dynamic range and such dramatic effect that one might imagine that the composer himself sensed it. Semyon Bychkov deserves admiration for what he has uncovered in the score. With the precision and warmth that has always been this ensemble’s forte, he followed exquisitely on the interpretation of Dvořák's music presented by Václav Talich, one of the Czech Philharmonic's former chief conductors.”

aktualne.cz, 28 September, 2023

On 4 January, 1896, the 129-year-old Czech Philharmonic gave its first concert in the famed Rudolfinum Hall in the heart of Prague. Conducted by Antonín Dvořák, the programme featured the world premiere of his Biblical Songs Nos. 1 –5. Renowned for its definitive interpretations of the Czech repertoire, the orchestra also has a special relationship to the music of Brahms and Tchaikovsky – both friends of Dvořák – and to Mahler, who conducted the world premiere of his Symphony No. 7 with the Czech Philharmonic in 1908.

As festivals, orchestras and presenters across the Czech Republic and Europe mark 2024 as the Year of Czech Music with performances of rarely played Czech repertoire together with popular favourites, Semyon Bychkov and the Czech Philharmonic open the 129th season with two performances of Dvořák’s Piano Concerto paired with Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique. The soloist, Daniil Trifinov, is one of three soloists who will join the orchestra in New York in December 2024 as part of Czech Week at Carnegie Hall. The orchestra will bring three programmes to New York which, in addition to the Piano Concerto, will feature Dvořák’s Cello Concerto with Yo-Yo Ma, and the Violin Concerto with Gil Shaham. The concertos will be paired with Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, three poem s from Smetana’s Má vlast and Janáček’s Glagolitic Mass for which they will be joined by the Prague Philharmonic Choir.

During 2024’s Year of Czech Music, Jakub Hrůša, the Czech Philharmonic’s principal guest conductor, will lead the orchestra in less familiar works by Pavel Zemek Novák, Vladimír Sommer, Josef Suk, and Luboš Fišer. Hrůša will also join the Czech Philharmonic in a tour of summer festivals including the Elbphilharmonie Summer, Lucerne Festival, Rheingau Musik Festival, and the BBC Proms. Sir Simon Rattle, recently named principal guest conductor of the Czech Philharmonic, will conduct Dvořák’s Slavonic Dances and Janáček’s Glagolitic Mass as well as performances of Kurt Weill’s opera The Seven Deadly Sins. Returning to the orchestra during the 2024/2025 season are Tomáš Netopil, Giovanni Antonini, Ingo Metzmacher, Alain Altinoglu, and James Gaffigan, while Nathalie Stutz mann, Alan Gilbert, and Lukáš Vasilek will be making their debuts with the orchestra.

Over recent seasons, the focus of Semyon Bychkov’s work with the orchestra has turned to Mahler and a new complete symphonic cycle for Pentatone. The first two discs in the cycle, Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 and No. 5, were released in 2022, followed in 2023 by Symphonies No. 2 “Resurrection” and No. 1. Semyon Bychkov will follow up on his recent performance of Mahler’s Third Symphony with the Fifth and Eighth in our 2024/2025 season. Fifty years after the death of Dmitri Shostakovich, Bychkov will feature Shost akovich’s Cello Concerto and Symphony No. 5 on tour to Vienna, Amsterdam, London, Paris, and Bruges. Other major works conducted by Bychkov this season include Brahms’s Symphony No. 2, Schubert’s Symphony No. 2, Bach’s Mass in B minor, and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 2. Mahler, who gave the world premiere of his Symphony No. 7 with the Czech Philharmonic in 1908, was not the first composer of renown to conduct the Czech Philharmonic. Edward Grieg conducted the orchestra in 1906; Stravinsky performed his Capriccio for Piano and Orchestra under Václav Talich in 1930; Leonard Bernstein conducted the European premiere of Aaron Copland’s Symphony No. 3 at the Prague Spring Festival in 1947; Arthur Honegger conducted a concert of his own music in 1949; Darius Milhaud gave the premiere of his Music for Prague at the Prague Spring Festival in 1966; and, in 1996, Krzysztof Penderecki conducted the premiere of his Concerto for Clarinet and Chamber Orchestra.

Their names are joined by the many luminaries who have collaborated with the orchestra over the years: Martha Argerich, Claudio Arrau, Evgeny Kissin, Erich Kleiber, Leonid Kogan, Erich Leinsdorf, Lovro von Matačić, Ivan Moravec, Yevgeny Mravinsky, David Oistrakh, Antonio Pedrotti, Sviatoslav Richter, Mstislav Rostropovich, Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Wolfgang Schneiderhan, George Szell, Henryk Szeryng, Bruno Walter, and Alexander Zemlinsky. The Czech Philharmonic’s extraordinary and proud history reflects both its location in the very heart of Europe and Czech Republic’s turbulent political history, for which Smetana’s Má vlast (My Country) is a potent symbol. The orchestra gave its first full rendition of Má vlast in 1901; in 1925 under chief conductor Václav Talich, Má vlast was the orchestra’s first live broadcast and, five years later, it was the first work that the orchestra committed to disc. During the Nazi occupation, when Goebbels demanded that the orchestra perform in Berlin and Dre sden, Talich programmed Má vlast as an act of defiance, while in 1945 Rafael Kubelík conducted the work as a concert of thanks for the newly liberated Czechoslovakia. In 1990, Má vlast was Kubelík’s choice to mark Czechoslovakia’s first free elections, a historic event which was recognised 30 years later when Bychkov chose the occasion of the first Velvet Revolution concert to perform the complete cycle at the Rudofinum. The orchestra marked the 200th anniversary of Smetana’s birth with the release of Má vlast conducted by Bychkov.

An early champion of Martinů’s music, the Czech Philharmonic premiered his Czech Rhapsody in 1919 and its detailed inventory of Czech music undertaken by Václav Talich included the world premieres of Martinů’s Half-Time (1924), Janáček’s Sinfonietta (1926) and the Prague premiere of Janáček’s Taras Bulba (1924). Rafael Kubelík was also an advocate of Martinů’s music and premiered his Field Mass (1946) and Symphony No. 5 (1947), while Karel Ančerl conducted the premiere of Martinů’s Symphony No. 6 Fantaisies symphoniques (1956). Martinů’s Rhapsody Concerto performed by Antoine Tamestit will be included in 2024’s Velvet Revolution Concert. Throughout the Czech Philharmonic’s history, two features have remained at its core: its championing of Czech composers and its belief in the power of music to change lives. Defined from its inauguration as an organisation for the enhancement of musical art in Prague, and a pension organisation for the members of the National Theatre Orchestra in Prague, its widows and orphans, the proceeds from the four concerts that it performed each year helped to support members of the orchestra who could no longer play and the immediate family of deceased musicians. As early as the 1920’s, Václav Talich (chief conductor 1919 – 1941) pioneered concerts for workers, young people and other voluntary organisations including the Red Cross, the Czechoslovak Sokol and the Union of Slavic Women, and in 1923 gave three benefit concerts for Russian, Austrian, and German players including members of the Vienna and Berlin Philharmonic Orchestras. The philosophy is equally vibrant today. Alongside the Czech Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, Orchestral Academy, and Jiří Bělohlávek Prize for young musicians, a comprehensive education strategy engages with more than 400 schools. An inspirational music and song programme led by singer Ida Kelarová for the extensive Romany communities within the Czech Republic and Slovakia has helped many socially excluded families find a voice. As part of the Carnegie Hall residency in December 2024, four members of the Czech Philharmonic’s Orchestral Academy will travel to New York where they will join forces with four young musicians from the Carnegie Hall and four students from the Royal Academy of Music. The initiative is supported by the Semyon Bychkov Educational Enhancement Fund.

“The two orchestral works were truly the highlights of both concerts. The Czech Philharmonic lives this music with an infectious intensity. From the very first bar of the overture, it is palpable to what extent there is an inner tension, a special involvement and complicity. Everything adds to it. To begin with, the sound: full, round, with a timbre and a very special personality, a colour that is a seal of identity. It is one of the few orchestras whose sound has a different character.”

Scherzo, 15 October, 2023

source: Czech Philharmonic

Jakub Hrůša is Chief Conductor of the Bamberg Symphony and Principal Guest Conductor of both the Czech Philharmonic and the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia. From autumn 2025, he will take up the post of Music Director at the Royal Opera at Covent Garden in London.

He frequently appears as a guest conductor with the world’s greatest orchestras, including the Berlin, Vienna, Munich and New York Philharmonics, the Bavarian Radio, NHK, Chicago and Boston Symphonies, the Leipzig Gewandhaus, Lucerne Festival, Royal Concertgebouw, Mahler Chamber and the Cleveland Orchestra, the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Dresden Staatskapelle, Orchestre de Paris, and Tonhalle Orchester Zürich.

He has led opera productions for the Vienna State Opera, the Royal Opera House, Opéra National de Paris, Zurich Opera, and the Glyndebourne Festival. In 2022, he made his debut at the Salzburg Festival with a new production of Káťa Kabanová.

For his recordings with the Bamberg Symphony, he received an ICMA for Hans Rott’s 1st Symphony in 2023, previously an ICMA for Bruckner’s 4th Symphony, as well as the Jahrespreis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik for Mahler's 4th Symphony, as well as a BBC Music Magazine Award for Dvořák and Martinů Piano Concertos with Ivo Kahánek. In addition, he has received Gramophone and BBC Music Magazine Award nominations for Martinů Violin Concertos with Frank Peter Zimmermann.

Hrůša studied at Prague’s Academy of Performing Arts, where his teachers included Jiří Bělohlávek. He is President of the International Martinů Circle and The Dvořák Society. He was the inaugural recipient of the Sir Charles Mackerras Prize, and in 2020 was awarded the Antonín Dvořák Prize by the Czech Republic’s Academy of Classical Music, and – with the Bamberg Symphony – the Bavarian State Prize for Music. In 2023, Jakub Hrůša was awarded Honorary Membership to the Royal Academy of Music in London.

source: Bamberger Symphoniker

One of the world's leading violinists, Julia Fischer is a versatile musician also known for her extraordinary abilities as a concert pianist, a chamber musician, and a music teacher. Born in Munich to German-Slovakian parents, Julia received her first violin lessons at the age of three, and her first piano lessons shortly after from her mother, Viera Fischer. At the age of nine, she started studying with the renowned violin professor Ana Chumachenco, later becoming her successor at the University of Munich. The first prize at the international Yehudi Menuhin Competition in 1995 was one of the milestones in her early career and she has since performed with top orchestras worldwide, frequently collaborating with renowned conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Christian Thielemann, Alan Gilbert, Jakub Hrůša, Vladimir Jurowski, Juanjo Mena, Riccardo Muti, Vasily Petrenko, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Thomas Søndergård, Yuri Temirkanov, Michael Tilson Thomas, and Franz Welser-Möst.

During the 2023-24 season, Julia Fischer is embarking on several tours throughout Europe including two with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, which she play-directs, the Royal Philharmonic with Vasily Petrenko, a recital tour with Yulianna Avdeeva, as well as with the Julia Fischer Quartet. She holds a residency in Prague, performing chamber music with members of the Czech Philharmonic in addition to a recital and a quartet program. Julia Fischer has also been selected as the soloist for the televised 2023 Nobel Prize concert in Stockholm with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic and Esa-Pekka Salonen. In February, she is returning to the San Fransisco Symphony, and in March, she will perform the world premiere of Daniel Kidane’s Violin Concerto with the London Philharmonic and Edward Gardner.

Julia Fischer’s 2022-23 season highlights included her Residency with the Staatskapelle Dresden, returns to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra with Riccardo Muti, and the Orchestre National de France with Cristian Măcelaru in addition to chamber music concerts at the Schubertiade and a celebration of twenty years of collaborating with cellist Daniel Müller-Schott.

Julia Fischer’s musical accomplishments extend far beyond her career as a violin virtuoso. She is an enthusiastic chamber musician on both violin and piano, a dedicated teacher, orchestra founder, and artistic director. In 2010, she founded the Julia Fischer Quartet with violinist Alexander Sitkovetsky, violist Nils Mönkemeyer, and cellist Benjamin Nyffenegger and continues to tour extensively in this formation. Her concert at the Alte Oper Frankfurt in 2010 marked her debut as a pianist: She performed the Grieg Piano Concerto in the second half, having played Saint-Saëns’s Violin Concerto No. 3 in the first half. The performance is available on a Decca-released DVD. Teaching is another integral part of her musical life as she continues to nurture and guide young talent and often performs alongside her students. She regularly gives masterclasses at Musikferien at Lake Starnberg (Starnberger See). In 2019, she founded a children’s orchestra, the Kindersinfoniker, teaming up with Johannes X. Schachtner and pianist Henri Bonamy in her hometown of Munich. Beginning in 2024, Julia Fischer will serve as Artistic Director of the Boswil Summer festival in Switzerland together with her fellow quartet musician Benjamin Nyffenegger.

Over the course of her artistic career, Julia Fischer has released numerous critically acclaimed and awarded CD and DVD recordings, first under the Pentatone label and later under Decca. In 2017, she decided to break away from the established recording industry practices and launched her own music platform, the JF CLUB, which offers exclusive audio and video footage, previews of her new recordings as well as personal insight into her music and her work to her fans and subscribers directly. César Franck’s Sonata in A major, Karol Szymanowski’s Sonata in D minor and Beethoven’s String Trio in C Minor are all available exclusively on her own music platform, the JF CLUB. In August 2021, Julia Fischer released a limited vinyl recording of Eugène Ysaye's Sonatas as an exclusive JF CLUB edition in collaboration with Hänssler Classic.

Julia Fischer holds numerous awards including the Federal Cross of Merit, the Gramophone Award, the German Culture Prize, and the Cultural Honorary Prize of the City of Munich. She plays a violin by Giovanni Battista Guadagnini (1742) as well as an instrument made by Philipp Augustin (2018).

source: IMG Artists

The Prague Philharmonic Choir was founded in 1935 by choirmaster and teacher Jan Kühn. Entering its 90th season, it is the oldest Czech professional choir. However, the choir has garnered international acclaim as a prominent ensemble as well. Recently, it has received particular recognition for its interpretation of its oratorio and cantata repertoire. Since 2007, the choir has been led by principal choirmaster and artistic director Lukáš Vasilek. Lukáš Kozubík serves as the second choirmaster.

Under the direction of Lukáš Vasilek, the choir has established itself as a highly respected partner of major orchestras. On the domestic scene, it has long collaborated primarily with the Czech Philharmonic and, in choral concerts, with the PKF – Prague Philharmonia. Internationally, its musical partners include the Berlin and Essen Philharmonics, the Vienna Symphony, the North German Radio Symphony Orchestra Hamburg, and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.

The Prague Philharmonic Choir has gained valuable experience from its work with distinguished conductors, which recently has included Semyon Bychkov, Jakub Hrůša, Sir Simon Rattle, Daniel Harding, Zubin Mehta, and Christoph Eschenbach. It also regularly participates in renowned music festivals such as Smetana’s Litomyšl, Prague Spring, Dvořák Prague and Prague Sounds. In recent years, the choir has played an active role on the international stage, serving as the resident choir for the Bregenzer Festspiele opera festival.

This season, the choir will be presenting three exclusive choral concerts. They were curated with a main focus on demanding and lesser-known choral pieces, such as a cappella or with instrumental accompaniment. Traditionally, it performs at concerts organised by Prague-based orchestras, but has been known to also visit other venues such as Ostrava. Internationally, the choir has performed in cities such as Dresden, Baden-Baden, Hamburg, and Bregenz.

In addition to its regular concert activities, the Prague Philharmonic Choir is engaged in educational projects. For young audiences, it has prepared a series of educational concerts specifically tailored for both schools and families with children. Their programme places strong emphasis on ensuring an enjoyable and actively engaging experience for children. Organised for voice students, the Prague Philharmonic Choir Academy offers a unique platform for young singers to engage in professional ensemble performances, participate in major musical projects, and gain experience working with leading artists.

The choir’s vocal qualities are evidenced, among other things, by its rich archive of recordings, which continues to grow with each season. The discography includes albums released by various record labels such as Pentatone, Decca Classics, Sony Classical, and Supraphon. The Prague Philharmonic Choir has also garnered recognition for its recording activities, receiving awards from the British Gramophone magazine and BBC Music Magazine, as well as the prestigious Diapason d’Or de l’Annèe award. The first gramophone recording, conducted by Václav Talich in 1952, featured Dvořák’s oratorio Stabat Mater; the most recent CDs, released in 2023, includes Mahler’s Symphony No.2 with the Czech Philharmonic and Semyon Bychkov and the choir’s own album entitled Stravinsky, Janáček, Bartók: Village Stories.

The Prague Philharmonic Choir received the 2018 Classic Prague Award for Best Vocal Concert, the Czech Television Classics of the Year Award, and in 2022 the Antonín Dvořák Award for outstanding artistic merit, promotion, and popularisation of Czech music.

source: Prague Philharmonic Choir

Lukáš Vasilek is entering his 16th season as the principal choirmaster and artistic director of the Prague Philharmonic Choir. He applies his intricate talent for choral music in interpreting both a cappella repertoire and large cantata and oratorio works with instrumentation. In conducting the choir, he collaborates with renowned orchestras and conductors, both Czech and international.

With the Prague Philharmonic Choir, he has earned recognition especially for his excellent interpretations of extensive works by Mahler, Dvořák, and Janáček. The highlights of the choral concerts include Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem and Francis Poulenc’s Stabat Mater. His daring approach to concert dramaturgy is evident in the incorporation of unconventional choices, such as jazz spirituals in the programme.

He studied conducting at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague and musicology at Charles University. He mainly returns to his original field of orchestral conducting in concerts of various choral series, where he has been working closely with the PKF – Prague Philharmonia for the past three years. He has conducted members of both the Czech Philharmonic and the Kiev Symphony Orchestra.

Lukáš Vasilek gained his first experience with choral singing as a member of the Boni pueri boys’ choir. His subsequent artistic journey led him to serve as the choirmaster of the Foerster Chamber Choir and later the National Theatre Choir. In 2022, he was a guest conductor of the French choir Accentus. In addition to the Prague Philharmonic Choir, he works with the vocal ensemble Martinů Voices, which he founded in 2010. With this ensemble, he primarily interprets chamber choral music spanning from the 19th to the 21st centuries. He is also a teacher at the Academy of Performing Arts, where he teaches choral conducting.

As a conductor and choirmaster, he has made a lasting impact through numerous recordings produced for major record labels such as Decca Classics and Supraphon. In recent years, his recordings of Bohuslav Martinů’s choral works have garnered international acclaim, earning awards from prestigious magazines such as Gramophone, BBC Music Magazine, and Diapason. His most recent CD with the Prague Philharmonic Choir was recorded in 2023. The album entitled Stravinsky, Janáček, Bartók: Village Stories encapsulates the rediscovered magic of folk songs and rituals in the compositions of these three 20th century masters.

source: Prague Philharmonic Choir

Acclaimed by The New York Times as “an outstanding actress, as well as a singer of extraordinary grace and finesse,” American soprano Corinne Winters has performed over thirty leading roles at major opera houses around the world.

Corinne begins her 23/24 season as a featured soloist with the Sun Symphony Orchestra for the opening of the new Ho Guom opera house in Hanoi, Vietnam, followed by her debut with the Berliner Philharmoniker in Dvořák’s Stabat Mater and a return to the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia for Dvořák’s cantata The Spectre’s Bride, both conducted by Jakub Hrůša. For her debut at the Teatro Real, Corinne will reprise the title role in Moniuszko’s Halka in concert, alongside Piotr Beczała. This season also marks her debut at the Wiener Staatsoper in the title role of Rusalka, a role she will debut at Opéra Royal de Wallonie-Liège earlier in the season. Further operatic appearances include returning to two of her signature roles, first Violetta Valéry in one New Year’s Eve performance of La Traviata at Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre, followed by Madama Butterfly at Opéra Nice Côte d’Azur and San Diego Opera. Ms. Winters will close her 23/24 season with her debut at Festival d’Aix-en-Provence of the title roles in C.W. Gluck’s Iphigénie en Aulide and Iphigénie en Tauride. Future seasons include debuts with Dvořák Prague Festival, Bayerische Staatsoper, Houston Grand Opera, Staatsoper Berlin, and the Metropolitan Opera, among others.

Directly following her triumphant debut as the title role in Barrie Kosky’s new Kát’a Kabanová at the Salzburger Festspiele, Corinne has brought her signature role to the Grand Théâtre de Genève, the Janáček Brno International Festival, Staatsoper Stuttgart, and Opéra de Lyon in the 22/23 season. She also returned to Teatro dell’Opera di Roma for her role debut as Blanche de la Force in Emma Dante’s new production of Dialogues des Carmélites, conducted by Michele Mariotti, and debuted with the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia in València as both Mimì in La bohème and the title role in Jenůfa. Corinne’s 22/23 season concert engagements included Strauss’s Vier letzte Lieder with the Bamberger Symphonikerat the Wiener Musikverein, conducted by Jakub Hrůša, and a gala concert of arias with Andrea Battistoni and the Orchestre de Opéra Royal de Wallonie-Liège.

Career highlights include the title roles in Madama Butterfly and Kát’a Kabanová with Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta at Oper Frankfurt, Giorgetta in Il Tabarro and the title role in Suor Angelica at La Monnaie /De Munt, Jenůfa at the Grand Théâtre de Genève, Moniuszko’s Halka at Theater an der Wien, Mélisande in Pelléas et Mélisande at Opernhaus Zürich, Rachel in La Juive and Desdemona in Otello at Opera Vlaanderen, Mimì in La bohème at Washington National Opera, and Violetta in La traviata at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Opera Australia, Opera Hong Kong, English National Opera, and Seattle Opera.

In concert, Corinne has sung the soprano solo in Verdi’s Requiem on a European tour with the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique, led by Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Les nuits d’étéwith the Borusan Istanbul Philharmonic Orchestra, and Bachianas Brasileiras with True Concord. She joined tenor Matthew Polenzani in recital for the George London Foundation, where she was praised by Opera News as “a striking brunette who manages to be simultaneously gamine and seductress, reveal[ing] an arresting, uniquely plum-colored soprano that could pass for mezzo in the middle but explodes with vibrant color on top.” She has also appeared in recital with the New York Festival of Song, Tucson Desert Song Festival, and Vocal Arts DC, showcasing Spanish song repertoire from her debut album, Canción amorosa.

An International Opera Awards nominee, Corinne has won prizes from the Mabel Dorn Reeder Foundation, Marcello Giordani Foundation (1st prize, Critics Choice Award, Vero Beach Prize), George London Foundation (George London/Leonie Rysanek Award), Sullivan Foundation (Career Grant), Licia Albanese Puccini Foundation (1st Prize), Palm Beach Opera Competition (1st Prize), Gerda Lissner Foundation (2nd Prize), and the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions (National Semifinalist, 1st place New England Region), and is a recipient of Wolf Trap Opera’s Shouse Career Grant.

Corinne earned a Master of Music degree in vocal performance from the Peabody Conservatory and Bachelor of Science degree magna cum laude from Towson University before appearing as a resident artist at the prestigious Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia.

As a master teacher and career mentor, Corinne enjoys sharing her passion for the craft with organizations such as Opera di Roma’s Fabbrica Young Artist Program, YoungArts Miami, Premiere Opera Foundation, National Student Opera Society UK, The University of Arizona, and her alma maters Towson University and the Peabody Conservatory, as well as her private voice studio.

source: Corinne Winters

"She's different, immediately recognisable, and exceptional: she has a free and expressive vocal style, playing with its expansiveness in space, enjoying the freedom of creating in the present moment." (Michaela Vostřelová, Aktualně.cz)

Mezzo-soprano and improviser Bella Adamova navigates through various musical periods, genres, and cultures with natural ease, but the focal point of her artistic interest is the song. Her repertoire ranges from the baroque to contemporary pieces (including works specifically written for her), encompassing German Lieder and Russian romances. With deeply and thoughtfully crafted song recitals, she has performed on significant stages and festivals such as Prague Spring, Heidelberger Frühling, St. Wenceslas Music Festival (SHF), Music is… Festival, and Villa Senar, the Swiss residence of Sergei Rachmaninov.

The young singer has won numerous awards at international competitions: together with pianist Malte Schäfer, they are laureates of the international Franz Schubert and Modern Music competition in Graz in the Lied duo category. She has also received the top prize in the International Robert Schumann Competition (2021), the Walter and Charlotte Hamel Prize at the Bundeswettbewerb Gesang in Berlin, the Czech Song Prize at the Emmy Destinn Awards in London, and the Bohuslav Martinů Foundation Prize at the International Antonín Dvořák Competition. The BBC Music Magazine recently featured her as a rising star.

Bella sings and improvises in a duo with pianist Michael Gees, with whom she released their first joint album, Blooming in 2019. Their second CD titled There is home (2023) explores the concept of searching for home and defining this notion or feeling. The album introduces an unconventional concept where songs by Pavel Haas, Benjamin Britten, Gustav Mahler, and Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky freely intertwine and are organically interspersed with improvisations on selected poems.

Bella also dedicates herself to operatic and oratorio repertoire. In 2022, she won the main prize in the oratorio category at the International Vocal Competition in 's-Hertogenbosch. This season she will sing the alto solos in Mahler's 2nd Symphony with the Prague Symphony Orchestra (FOK) and Tomáš Brauner, de Falla’s El amor brujo with the Bohuslav Martinů Philharmonic and Robert Kružík, and Janáček’s Glagolitic Mass. On the opera stages, she appears at Theater Bielefeld in Carmen as Mercédès, and at the National Theatre in Prague as the Third Woodsprite in a new staging of Rusalka (directed by the SKUTR duo/conductor Tomáš Netopil).

Bella Adamova was born in Grozny and grew up in Prague. She completed her musical studies in London, Cologne, Basel, and Hanover and received additional training at the Tanglewood Music Center, Royaumont Foundation, and Lied Basel. Bella had the privilege of learning from, amongst others, Anne Sofie von Otter, Christoph Prégardien, Thomas Hampson, Simon Keenlyside, Jan Philip Schulze, Dawn Upshaw, Christian Immler, and Kateřina Knežíková.

source: Makropulos

One of the most exciting tenors Britain has to offer today, David Butt Philip is quickly becoming a firm favorite on the major international stages. An alumnus of the Jette Parker Young Artist Programme, his recent debuts in roles such as Stolzing Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg at Wiener Staatsoper; Florestan Fidelio and Prince Rusalka at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden; Bacchus Ariadne auf Naxos at the Edinburgh International Festival and Bayerische Staatsoper and title roles of Der Zwerg and Lohengrin at Deutsche Oper Berlin, have earned him major critical and public acclaim.

In the 2023-24 season, Butt Philip continues to make eagerly awaited appearances with his debut as Apollo in Richard Strauss Daphne at the Wiener Staatsoper and at the Staatsoper Berlin; a new production of Lohengrin and a return as Stolzing both at Wiener Staatsoper; Don José Carmen and Lohengrin at the Deutsche Oper Berlin; Florestan Fidelio at the Bayerische Staatsoper and a role debut as Canio Pagliacci at Opera Holland Park. On the concert platform, Butt Philip joins the Staatskapelle Dresden for Mahler Symphony No.8 under the baton of Christian Thielemann; the Berliner Philharmoniker for Dvořák Stabat Mater conducted by Jakub Hrůša and makes his debut at the Bergen International Festival.

Engagements of the previous season included a triple appearance at the Wiener Staatsoper as Laca Jenůfa, Stolzing in Keith Warner’s new production of Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and Don Jose Carmen. He also made his company and role debut at the San Francisco Opera as Der Kaiser in David Hockney’s production of Die Frau ohne Schatten conducted by Sir David Runnicles and returned to the Royal Opera House as the Prince in a new contemporary staging of Rusalka by Natalie Abrahami and Ann Yee. His concert appearances included Stolzing Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg for his debut at the Spring Festival in Tokyo and Schönberg’s Gurre- Lieder with the London Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Edward Gardner.

Recent engagements include his Metropolitan Opera debut as Grigory Boris Godunuv and in the American premiere of Brett Dean’s Hamlet as Laertes; Boris in a new production of Katya Kabanova at the Salzburg Festival and in Glyndebourne; the title role in Brett Dean’s Hamlet, this time in a new production by Matthew Jocelyn in Cologne; his widely acclaimed role debut in the title role of Der Zwerg in a new production by Tobias Kratzer, and as Lohengrin at Deutsche Oper Berlin; Bacchus Ariadne auf Naxos at the Bayerische Staatsoper; the Prince in Christof Loy’s new production of Rusalka, Froh Das Rheingold and Essex in Sir David McVicar’s new production of Gloriana, all at Teatro Real and Erik Der fliegende Holländer at Opéra de Lille; Florestan Fidelio at the National Theatre in Prague and subsequently at the Royal Opera House in Tobias Kratzer’s coveted production, replacing an ailing Jonas Kaufmann. The performance starring Butt Philip and Lise Davidsen was subsequently aired on BBC4 and was met with great acclaim.

British audiences saw him at the Royal Opera House as The Prince Rusalka, Grigoriy Boris Godunov; Narraboth Salome and a Christmas concert conducted by Mark Wigglesworth; at English National Opera as Rodolfo in their Drive & Live production of La bohème, Daniel Kramer’s new production of Britten’s War Requiem, for which he was nominated for an Olivier Award, Don Jose Carmen and Pinkerton Madama Butterfly; at Opera Holland Park as Count Vaudemont in Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta and Folco in Mascagni’s Isabeau; at Opera North as Laca Jenůfa and Luigi Il Tabarro; and at Glyndebourne as Laertes in the premiere of Brett Dean’s Hamlet at the Glyndebourne Festival and then as the title role on tour.

Born and brought up in Wells in Somerset, Butt Philip was a chorister at Peterborough Cathedral. He is a graduate of Royal Northern College of Music, the Royal Academy of Music, and the National Opera Studio and also a Samling Artist, an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music and winner of the prestigious John Christie Award in 2011.

source: MWA management

British bass Brindley Sherratt is one of today’s most respected singers. Revered for his extraordinary vocal and stage presence, he is noted all over the world for roles such as Claggart Billy Budd, Gurnemanz Parsifal, Hunding Die Walküre and Sarastro Die Zauberflöte, a role he has performed over a hundred times.

Highlights of his 2023/24 season include a double appearance at the Bayerische Staatsosper as Rocco Fidelio and as Astradamors in a new production of Le Grand Macabre by Krzysztof Warlikowski; Zebul in Oliver Mears’ new production of Jeptha at Royal Opera House; a highly anticipated return to the Metropolitan Opera as Sarastro Die Zauberflöte; and his role debut as Hagen Götterdämmerung with the London Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Vladimir Jurowski. He can also be heard in Act 1 of Die Walküre at theTeatro dell’Opera di Roma conducted by Omer Meir Wellber; Mussorgsky Songs and Dances of Death with the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España in Madrid; and a recital at Wigmore Hall with pianist Julius Drake.

Last season, Sherratt made his Opéra National de Paris debut as Sarastro Die Zauberflöte, a role which he also reprised at the Royal Opera House. He also appeared as the Doktor Wozzeck in new productions at the Royal Opera House and the Festival d’Aix en Provence and Swallow in Stefan Herheim’s acclaimed production of Peter Grimes at Bayerische Staatsoper. On the concert platform, he was seen as Gurnemanz Parsifal with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Edward Gardner; Harapha in Handel Samson at the BBC Proms with the Academy of Ancient Music conducted by Laurence Cummings; Beethoven Missa Solemnis at the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence conducted by Thomas Hengelbrock and Sarastro Die Zauberflöte at the Edinburgh International Festival under the baton of Maxim Emelyanychev.

Further engagements include a hugely acclaimed debut as Gurnemanz in semi- staged performances of Parsifal with the Orchestra of Opera North conducted by Richard Farnes; Hunding in Richard Jones’ new production of The Valkyrie for the English National Opera; Claggart Billy Budd, Sarastro, Sparafucile Rigoletto, Gremin Eugene Onegin, Fafner in The Ring Cycle, Ramfis Aida , Il Commendatore Don Giovanni and Timur Turandot, all at Royal Opera House; Ochs Der Rosenkavalier for the Glyndebourne Festival and the Welsh National Opera; Marke Tristan und Isolde for the Glyndebourne Festival; Sarastro at the Wiener Staatsoper, Hamburgische Staatsoper and for the Dutch National Opera and Glyndebourne Festival; Claggart for the Teatro Réal in Madrid, at the Glyndebourne and Aldeburgh Festivals and at the BBC Proms; Geronte di Ravoir Manon Lescaut for the Metropolitan Opera; Bottom A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence; Doctor Wozzeck at the Lyric Opera of Chicago and Arkel Pelléas et Mélisande for the Opernhaus Zurich, Oper Frankfurt and Glyndebourne Festival. His many roles for the English National Opera include Sarastro, Pimen Boris Gudonov and Fiesco Simon Boccanegra. He has also sung Judge Turpin Sweeney Todd at the Opernhaus Zurich; Banco Macbeth for the Opéra de Bordeaux; Pimen for the Opéra de Nice; Balducci Benvenuto Cellini and Hobson Peter Grimes in Salzburg; Rocco in Seville; Pogner Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg for the Welsh National Opera and Fasolt Das Rheingold and Filippo Don Carlo for Opera North.

Highly in demand on the concert platform, he has appeared at the Bregenz, Edinburgh, Lucerne, Salzburg and Three Choirs Festivals and at the BBC Proms. He works regularly with leading orchestras and conductors and recent engagements have included the Dallas Symphony Orchestra conducted by Fabio Luisi; Orchestra of the Royal Opera House with Pappano; the Philharmonia with Sir Andrew Davis; the Hallé Orchestra with Sir Mark Elder; the Mahler Chamber Orchestra with Harding; the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra with Bicket; the Monteverdi Choir with Gardiner; the Scottish Chamber Orchestra with Nézet-Séguin and the Orchestre des Champs-Elysées and Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen with Langrée.

He has recorded the roles of Polyphemus Acis and Galetea (Nimbus); Somnus/Cadmus Semele and Ariodate Serse (Chandos); Ubaldo in Donizetti’s Imelda de Lambertazzi and Goffredo in Bellini’s Il Pirata (Opera Rara); Rocco Fidelio (Glyndebourne Live) as well as Judas in The Apostles with the Hallé Orchestra and Sir Mark Elder; Beethoven Missa Solemnis with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and John Nelson and Haydn Masses and Bach Cantatas with the Monteverdi Choir and Sir John Eliot Gardiner.

Born in Lancashire into a family of strong singers, he initially studied trumpet at the Royal Academy of Music, and is now a Visiting Professor at both the Royal Academy and the Royal College of Music.

source: MWA management

Since his debut with the Berlin Philharmonic under the baton of Sir Simon Rattle and the Salzburg Festival with Magdalena Kožená, Christian Schmitt has been one of the most sought-after organists internationally. In the 22/23 season he will make his debuts at Carnegie Hall New York under Dennis Russel Davis, with the Dallas Symphony and with the Gothenburg Symphony under Christoph Eschenbach. In 2021/22 he was "Artist in Focus" of the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich as well as curator of the "International Organ Days" there and inaugurated the new organ under the direction of Paavo Järvi. Since 2014 he has been Principal Organist of the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, for which he curates the organ series for the Bamberg Concert Hall.

Recent highlights include his debut at Walt Disney Concert Hall presented by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, performances with the Staatskapelle Berlin conducted by Daniel Barenboim, the Japanese premiere of Toshio Hosokawa's "Embrace - Light and Shadow" with the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra at Suntory Hall, and the release of his most recent recording of Hindemith’s Kammermusik No. 7 with conductor Christoph Eschenbach. Christian Schmitt has played the organs of the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, the Konzerthaus Berlin, the Berlin Philharmonie, the Vienna Musikverein, the Gewandhaus Leipzig and the Maison Symphonique Montréal, and has collaborated with conductors and soloists such as Juliane Banse, Sibylla Rubens, Matthias Goerne, Thomas Hampson, Philippe Herreweghe, Manfred Honeck, Matthias Höfs Jakub Hruša, Marek Janowski, Cornelius Meister and Michael Volle.

Christian Schmitt's discography currently includes around 40 recordings. For Deutsche Grammophon, Schmitt recorded two CDs for the project 'Bach 333 - Die neue Gesamtausgabe'. Equally noteworthy is the album 'Prayer' with Magdalena Kožená, released by Deutsche Grammophon in 2014. In 2013, the organist was awarded an ECHO Klassik for his recording of Widor's organ symphonies opp. 42.3 and 69.

A passionate educator, Christian is a guest lecturer at universities worldwide. Since the winter semester of 2021, he has been teaching at Codarts University Rotterdam as Organ Professor and successor to Ben van Oostens. Christian Schmitt studied organ with Daniel Roth (Paris), Leo Krämer (Saarbrücken) and James David Christie (Boston).

He is an expert consultant for organ renovations and new construction of organs in Berlin, Nuremberg, Zurich, Lucerne and Brno. His latest project is a digitally sampled version of the organ of the Philharmonie Essen for concerts with and in orchestra’s. The digital version of the famous organ, created in cooperation with a Dutch acoustics company, is transportable and easily adaptable to hall size and needs. Christian Schmitt has been a member of numerous international music competition juries and is involved in the music education project Rhapsody in School.

source: Dorn Music

The Rudolfinum is one of the most important Neo-Renaissance edifices in the Czech Republic. In its conception as a multi-purpose cultural centre it was quite unique in Europe at the time of its construction. Based on a joint design by two outstanding Czech architects, Josef Zítek and Josef Schultz, a magnificent building was erected serving for concerts, as a gallery, and as a museum. The grand opening on 7 February 1885 was attended by Crown Prince Rudolph of Austria, in whose honour the structure was named. In 1896 the very first concert of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra took place in the Rudolfinum's main concert hall, under the baton of the composer Antonín Dvořák whose name was later bestowed on the hall.