Youthful energy and an informal afternoon concert go together perfectly. Appearances by talented participants in the Concertino Praga competition represent another event in the series of early evening gatherings at the Bořislavka Centre. This is sure proof that there are no losers at artistic competitions at the highest level.

Matthew Hockaday considers himself a multi-instrumentalist. He plays the clarinet, flute and piano. He is the winner of the 2021 Zlatý oříšek competition. He started playing the clarinet at the age of 8 and has studied under Zdeňka Andreášová at the Iša Krejčí Arts Primary School in Olomouc since 2019. He has been a student at the City of Prague Grammar School and Music School under Milan Polák since September 2023. His greatest successes include a Platinum Prize from the London Young Musician competition (2022/23) and the 1st prize from the International Mozart Competition Vienna (2023), the London Classical Music Competition (2023) and the OPUS International Music Competition (2023, Poland). He is the holder of the 1st prize and laureate title from Pro Bohemia Ostrava 2023. He has played with the Moravian Philharmonic in Olomouc (2021), performed as a soloist at a concert with the Janáček Philharmonic in Ostrava (2023) and performed recital concerts in Olomouc (2023) and Šumperk (2024). In 2024, he will perform as a soloist with the Prague Symphony Orchestra at the Municipal House in Prague, with the Western Bohemian Symphony Orchestra in Mariánské Lázně and at Smetana’s Litomyšl 2024.

Viktor Stocker has been playing the accordion since the age of six. His greatest successes include first prizes from the Odin International Music Competition, the Australian International Accordion Championships or the Vivo International Music Competition New York, 1st place in accordion competitions in Prague, Ostrava, Vilnius, London or Vienna and 2nd place in Castelfidardo, Italy (2021) and Klingenthal, Germany (2023). In 2022, he received the first prize and a special mention for the performance of his own composition at the German Jugend musiziert competition. In 2024, he received the title of the absolute winner at the international Bach competition for accordion held in Opole, Poland. As a soloist, he has performed at the Senate of the Czech Republic, in the European Parliament, as part of the Hope Concert (Koncert naděje) broadcast on Czech Television and at a variety of music festivals. In addition to playing the accordion, Viktor also devotes himself to composition. He is a three-time laureate at the German Jugend komponiert competition and the recipient of awards from Luxemburg and France.

Darin Lambrev was born in Sofia on 7 February 2010, into the family of the theatrical director Nikolaj Lambrev and the sculptor Ogniana Vakavlieva. He began playing the piano and the violoncello at the age of five. In 2015, he successfully entered the Liubomir Pipkov National School of Music to study the violoncello. He continued to study the piano as his second instrument. In October 2023, he was accepted into the Akademie für Tonkunst in Darmstadt, into the class of Romain Garioud. He has actively participated in classes by Peter Somodari (2018, 2021) and László Fenyö (2019, 2022) as part of the Allegra Festival. He has also participated at ISA masterclasses for string players in Semmering, Austria (2022) and in masterclasses for cellists as part of the Chieti Classica International Music Festival in Italy (2023) under Romain Garioud. He has performed as a soloists with orchestras since the age of eleven. Since 2022, he has played with the Sforzato piano trio, the youngest professional trio in Bulgaria. He has received more than twenty, first, second and main prizes.

Artium by KKCG is a publicly accessible space for art of all genres, breathing artistic life into Bořislavka and enriching the cultural offerings in Prague 6 and the capital more generally. Artium regularly holds exhibitions, concerts, and other cultural events, and the unconventional space allows visitors to explore art across different genres, often intertwined to create a unique experience. During this year’s Dvořák Prague International Music Festival’s concerts at Artium, spectators can also enjoy an extensive exhibition of photographic installations by Jarmila Štuková titled "Us and the Others."

The concerts presented here as part of the Dvořák Prague Festival are organized for a good cause, with all proceeds supporting talented, young musicians.