The Czech Philharmonic () is a

symphony orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...

based in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

. Its principal performing venue is the Rudolfinum concert hall.

History

The name "Czech Philharmonic Orchestra" appeared for the first time in 1894, as the title of the orchestra of the Prague National Theatre. It played its first concert under its current name on 4 January 1896 when

Antonín Dvořák Antonín Leopold Dvořák ( ; ; 8September 18411May 1904) was a Czech composer. He frequently employed rhythms and other aspects of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia, following the Romantic-era nationalist example of his predec ...

conducted his own compositions, but it did not become fully independent from the opera until 1901. The first representative concert took place on 15 October 1901 conducted by

Ludvík Čelanský Ludvík or Ludvik is a given name. Notable people with the name include: *Ludvík Aškenazy (1921–1986), Czech writer and journalist *Ludvik Buland (1893–1945), Norwegian trade unionist *Ludvík Čelanský (1870–1931), Czech conductor and co ...

, the first artistic director of the orchestra. In 1908,

Gustav Mahler Gustav Mahler (; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic music, Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century Austro-German tradition and ...

led the orchestra in the world premiere of his Symphony No. 7. The orchestra first became internationally known during the principal conductorship of Václav Talich, who held the post from 1919 to 1931, and again from 1933 to 1941. In 1941, Talich and the orchestra made a controversial journey to Germany, where they performed

Bedřich Smetana Bedřich Smetana ( ; ; 2 March 1824 – 12 May 1884) was a Czech composer who pioneered the development of a musical style that became closely identified with his people's aspirations to a cultural and political "revival". He has been regarded ...

's '' My Country'' in a concert enforced by the German offices. Subsequent chief conductors were

Rafael Kubelík Rafael Jeroným Kubelík, KBE (29 June 1914 – 11 August 1996) was a Czech conductor and composer. The son of a distinguished violinist, Jan Kubelík, he was trained in Prague and made his debut with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra at the a ...

(1942–1948), Karel Ančerl (1950–1968), Václav Neumann (1968–1989),

Jiří Bělohlávek Jiří Bělohlávek, (; 24 February 1946 – 31 May 2017) was a Czech conductor. He was a leading interpreter of Czech classical music, and became chief conductor of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra in 1990, a role he would serve on two occasio ...

(1990–1992), Gerd Albrecht (1993–1996), Vladimir Ashkenazy (1996–2003), Zdeněk Mácal (2003–2007), and Eliahu Inbal (2009–2012). In the wake of the

Velvet Revolution The Velvet Revolution () or Gentle Revolution () was a non-violent transition of power in what was then Czechoslovakia, occurring from 17 November to 28 November 1989. Popular demonstrations against the one-party government of the Communist Pa ...

, under new conditions of financial insecurity, the orchestra was reorganised in 1991 and controversially voted to appoint Gerd Albrecht its new chief conductor and to dismiss Bělohlávek. Instead of remaining until Albrecht's accession, Bělohlávek resigned from the orchestra in 1992. In December 2010, the orchestra announced the reappointment of Bělohlávek as chief conductor, beginning in 2012, with an initial contract of 4 years. The orchestra's official English name changed from the "Czech Philharmonic Orchestra" to the "Czech Philharmonic" at the beginning of 2015. In January 2017, the orchestra announced the extension of Bělohlávek's contract through the 2021–2022 season. Bělohlávek continued to serve as the orchestra's chief conductor until his death on 31 May 2017. In 2013, Semyon Bychkov first guest-conducted the orchestra, which subsequently named him director of its Tchaikovsky Project. In October 2017, the orchestra announced the appointment of Bychkov as its next chief conductor and music director, effective with the 2018–2019 season. In September 2022, the orchestra announced the extension of Bychkov's contract through 2028. Past principal guest conductors of the orchestra have included Sir

Charles Mackerras Sir Alan Charles MacLaurin Mackerras (; (17 November 1925 – 14 July 2010) was an American-born Australian conductor. He was an authority on the operas of Janáček and Mozart, and the comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan. He was long associ ...

and Manfred Honeck.

Jakub Hrůša Jakub Hrůša (born 23 July 1981 in Brno) is a Czech conductor. He is chief conductor of the Bamberg Symphony. Education Hrůša is the son of the architect . There were no professional musicians in his family who were drawn mainly from technica ...

is the orchestra's current 'permanent guest conductor', as of the 2015–2016 season. In October 2017, the orchestra announced the appointments of Hrůša and of

Tomáš Netopil Tomáš Netopil (born 18 July 1975) is a Czech conductor. He conducted the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra in 2005 and made his debut with the London Philharmonic Orchestra in May 2006. In 2006, he also conducted at the Salzburg Festival and l'Orche ...

as joint principal guest conductors of the orchestra, effective with the 2018–2019 season. In February 2024, the orchestra announced the appointment of Sir Simon Rattle as its next principal guest conductor, for a period of five years, with the title of 'Rafael Kubelík Conducting Chair'. In April 2024, the orchestra announced that Bychkov is to stand down as its chief conductor and music director at the close of the 2027-2028 season. The Czech Philharmonic's first

phonograph A phonograph, later called a gramophone, and since the 1940s a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogue reproduction of sound. The sound vibration Waveform, waveforms are recorded as correspond ...

recording dates from 1929, when Václav Talich recorded '' My Country'' for the British

His Master's Voice His Master's Voice is an entertainment trademark featuring a dog named Nipper, curiously peering into the horn of a wind-up gramophone. Painted by Francis Barraud in 1898, the image has since become a global symbol used across consumer elect ...

label. The orchestra recordings are most often released on the Supraphon label.

Honours and awards

The Czech Philharmonic has won many awards, ten Grand Prix du Disque de l'Académie Charles Cros, five Grand Prix du disque de l'

Académie française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

and several Cannes Classical Awards. The Czech Philharmonic was nominated for

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

in 2005, and also two Wiener Flötenuhr awards, with

Pavel Štěpán Pavel Štěpán (28 May 1925 – 30 September 1998) was a Czechs, Czech pianist whose domain was the interpretation of piano works by Josef Suk (composer), Josef Suk, Vitezslav Novak and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's piano concertos. He has always been ...

, Zdeněk Mácal and Václav Neumann (1971 and 1982). It was voted 20th place of the top 20 best orchestras in the world in a 2008 survey by '' Gramophone'' magazine.

Chief conductors

(1901–1903) * (1903–1918) * Václav Talich (1919–1931, 1933–1941) *

(1942–1948) * Karel Šejna (1950) * Karel Ančerl (1950–1968) * Václav Neumann (1968–1989) *

(1990–1992) * Gerd Albrecht (1993–1996) * Vladimir Ashkenazy (1996–2003) * Zdeněk Mácal (2003–2007) * Eliahu Inbal (2009–2012) *

(2012–2017) * Semyon Bychkov (2018–present)

References

External links

* * František Sláma
Archive
: More on the History of the Czech Philharmonic between the 1940s and the 1980s * *
more about this recording
* {{Authority control Symphony orchestras Orchestras in Prague Musical groups established in 1896 1896 establishments in Austria-Hungary

History

Honours and awards

Chief conductors

References

Further reading

External links