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| Who | PKF – Prague Philharmonia Vojtěch Spurný, conductor Maxim Vengerov, violin |
| Where | Valtice Castle Riding Hall |
| Program | Carl Friedrich Abel (1723–1787) Sinfonia in G dur, op. 7, no. 1, WKO 13 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) Violin Concerto no. 1 B flat major, KV 207 —– break —– Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Violin Concerto no. 2 D major, KV 211 |
In 1994, conductor Jiří Bělohlávek and a group of talented young musicians founded the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, which has been operating since its 20th season under the name PKF – Prague Philharmonia. During the first three decades of its existence, PKF earned respect in the music world not only for its unique sound, but also for its core repertoire, mainly focused on the works of J. Haydn, W. A. Mozart and L. van Beethoven. However, the orchestra can be very flexible: its repertoire includes a wide range of works from concertos, chamber ensemble compositions to projects of a large symphonic character.
The orchestra has been led by a number of renowned chief conductors since its foundation – Kaspar Zehnder took over in 2005 after Jiří Bělohlávek, then Jakub Hrůša in 2008 and the French conductor Emmanuel Villaume at the beginning of the 2015/2016 season. PKF performs regularly with world-famous conductors and soloists and has recorded more than 90 CDs for prestigious international and domestic music labels. The orchestra also participates in international concert tours in Asia (Japan, Taiwan) and Europe (Belgium, France, Italy, Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, etc.) and almost every year performs at festivals such as the Prague Spring Festival, Smetana’s Litomyšl, Český Krumlov Festival, Lednice-Valtice Music Festival and the St. Wenceslas Music Festival. International festivals include the Brucknerfest in Linz, Bratislava Music Festival, Les Musicales de Colmar and the Murten Classics Festival.
Vojtěch Spurný – a leading Czech conductor, keyboard player and music teacher – first studied piano and flute at the Prague Conservatory and later opera direction, conducting and harpsichord at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. He focused on early music performance at the Hoogeschool voor de Kunsten in Utrecht and at master classes with J. Sonnleitner, H. Rilling and K. Gilbert. As an opera conductor he has worked with the Baroque theatre Drottningholm Palace, the J. K. Tyl Theatre in Pilsen, Göteborg Opera, Oslo Opera House and the National Theatre. Currently he is a permanent guest conductor of the South Czech Philharmonic, but he has also collaborated with the Czech Chamber Philharmonic, Ensemble 18+, PKF – Prague Philharmonia, Haas ensemble, Chursaechsische Kammerphilharmonie, Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava and important performers such as S. Brill, P. Bernold, V. Hudeček, S. Kam, J. Perianes, M. Maisky, V. Gluzman and others. He has also been a guest at international festivals (IMF Český Krumlov, IMF Leoš Janáček, Prague Spring, Smetana Litomyšl, Carinthischer Sommer, etc.) and has made several recordings, both as a player on historical keyboard instruments (CD “Masters of Czech Baroque and Classicism“) and as a conductor (DVD “Dov’ è amore, è gelosia“). Furthermore, he works as an editor for Czech Radio (concerts by J. B. Tomášek and F. X. Dušek) and Editio Bärenreiter Praha (harpsichord sonatas by F. X. Dušek and J. Mysliveček) and teaches at the Faculty of Arts of the University of Ostrava and the Church Conservatory in Opava.
Maxim Vengerov was born in 1974 and began to win awards in international competitions and record solo CDs already 10 years later. One of the world’s most important musicians and conductors studied under G. Turchanina and Zakhar Bron. He also turned to conducting at the beginning of the new century, following the example of his mentor Mstislav Rostropovich, which he studied at the Moscow Institute.
During the last two seasons, Maxim Vengerov has performed with the Orchestra Filarmonica della Scala, Monte Carlo Philharmonic and Paris Philharmonic, has visited New York, Toronto, Vienna, London, Aspen, Taiwan, Shanghai and many more. He regularly performs in Europe, America and Asia. His most recent CD was released in 2020, where he recorded Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto and works in C. Saint-Saens and M. Ravel.
He has won numerous awards (Grammy Award, Gramophone Award, ECHO Award, World Economic Forum Crystal Award, etc.), has been recognized by numerous institutions and has been the subject of several documentaries (Playing by Heart, Living the Dream). However, one of Vengerov’s greatest missions is to pass on his knowledge and experience to the next generation, which he does both in his many masterclasses and at Mozarteum University Salzburg as well as the Royal College of Music in London. He has also published a set of online lessons on music performance in 2021 and initiated a number of other educational and outreach programmes.
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