Chamber music is the noblest performing discipline. It is enormously difficult to develop the ability to listen to one’s musical colleagues, to react to their breathing, to perceive time and sound, and at the same time to build consensus for one’s own musical ideas, and that is why chamber ensembles need a lot of time for the players to become accustomed to each other. It is said that whoever has not gone through playing chamber music is not a complete musician.

This will again be proven by chamber music masterclasses led by three members of the Vienna Philharmonic, violinists Milan Šetena and Martin Kubik and cellist Edison Pashko. For the classes, they have selected works for different combinations of instruments – Dvořák’s String Quartet No. 10 in E flat major, Brahms’s String Quintet No. 2 in G major, and a Schulhoff’s String Sextet for two violins, two violas, and two cellos. And since, as we have said, chamber music takes time, the masterclasses will be spread over several days, climaxing on 23 September 2024 with an appearance by the individual ensembles at a concert at The Academy of Performing Arts in Prague.

Those interested in active participation can apply by sending a CV (max. 900 characters) to the email address stehlikova@dvorakovapraha.cz by 31 July 2023. The age limit for participants is 28.

Public masterclasses are yet another way that the Academy of Classical Music at the Dvořák Prague Festival is working to promote the education of musicians. As an auxiliary programme in the series For the Future, it gives young musicians the chance to play before exceptional artists and to consult on their views on the interpretation of a work with performers who have invaluable experience on the world’s great stages. A masterclass is a unique opportunity for the public to witness the final phase of preparing an interpretation. Rather than a usual lesson, it is an exchange of artistic opinions. It gives an exciting insight into the final phase of a young artist’s preparation before the moment when her or she appears in the concert arena with a finished interpretive conception in order to share an artistic opinion with the public.

Edison Pashko was born in Korça, Albania. Right there, in his hometown, he began studying the cello under the guidance of Kostika Tanta at the age of 6. From 1992 onwards, he continued his cello studies under the direction of Gëzim Laro at the Art Academy in Tirana. A year later, he joined the class of Professor Florian Kitt at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz, where he graduated with honors in 1998.

In 1996, was Edison also a prize winner at the International Cello Competition in Liezen.

From 1999 until 2000, Edison furthered his education with Valentin Erben at the Music University in Vienna. In 2009, he became engaged in the stage orchestra of the Vienna State Opera. Following a successful audition, Edison became a member of the Vienna State Opera Orchestra in 2010, and in 2013, he became a member of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra.

As a soloist, Edison has performed with various European and Asian orchestras.

He is a passionate and sought-after chamber musician, having served as the solo cellist in the Wiener Kammerphilharmonie, and performed with ensembles such as "Wiener Collage" and "die Reihe." Edison is also a regular guest with the Küchl Quartet and Steude Quartet.

source: Edison Pashko

The Music and Dance Faculty (HAMU) of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague was established in 1945 as one of the Academy’s three components, following on from the Prague Conservatory master school (the second oldest institution of its kind in Europe). HAMU is located in the heart of Prague’s historic centre, in the premises of Lichtenstein Palace and Hartig Palace.

Respirium is a hall with a girded ceiling with Renaissance paintings suitable for audiences of approximately 50 persons.