Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra to open Dvořák's Prague Festival

This year's Dvořák Prague Festival will open on 5 September at the Rudolfinum with the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra, led by its chief conductor Alain Altinoglu. The Antonín Dvořák Cello Concerto will be performed by Gautier Capuçon. Soprano Kateřina Kněžíková has accepted the role of curator of the Dvořák Collection programme series, and the programme also includes new series No Tie and Homage to Schumann. The programme of this year's 18th edition was announced today by the organisers at a meeting in Prague's Rudolfinum.

"Dvořák's Prague has reached an imaginary maturity. It enters its 18th year in great shape and with the appropriate self-confidence of a young person who clearly knows what he wants to say without denying his age. He brings visions and is ready to share them with listeners of all generations not only in the content itself, but also in his own form," said Robert Kolář, director of the Academy of Classical Music.

This year, the Dvořák Collection, the main programme series presenting Dvořák's work, will focus on the composer's song works. Soprano Kněžíková will be responsible for its programme as curator, and will appear in four different programmes and with a number of guests. The entire series will open on 8 September at the Rudolfinum with a concert Tribute to the Songs of Antonín Dvořák with the Czech Radio Symphony Orchestra.

A new addition to the festival programme, entitled No Tie, combines classical music with humour, exaggeration and other musical genres. In addition to the comic duo Igudesman & Joo, whose Sound New World programme was commissioned by the festival, this series will feature a concert by the Philharmonix group consisting of players from the Berlin and Vienna Philharmonics, Cello Duello, Berlin Philharmonic horn player Sarah Willis with her programme Mozart y Mambo and cellist Jiří Bárta with guests in the programme Bach Meets Bolling.

In addition to the opening concert, the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra will also perform at Dvořák Prague on 6 September with violinist Julian Rachlin. The Saxon State Orchestra Dresden will be led by its chief conductor Daniele Gatti on 14 September, with Kirill Gerstein as soloist in Robert Schumann's Piano Concerto. Pianist Sir András Schiff will appear on 15 September as artistic director of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and as soloist in two Mozart concertos. The festival concludes on 23 September with the Orchestre National de France.

The Tribute to Schumann programme series was inspired by the fact that the festival will feature his piano and cello concertos, as well as the lesser-known Violin Concerto and Piano Concerto by his wife Clara Schumann. The Czech Philharmonic Orchestra is once again the festival's ensemble in residence, with two performances: on 16 September, first Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Violin Concerto No. 3 will be performed, followed by Sergei Prokofiev's Sixth Symphony. Leonidas Kavakos will be the soloist and conductor. On Friday, 19 September, the British conductor Robin Ticciati will lead the orchestra, and Schumann's Violin Concerto will be performed by Norwegian soloist Vilde Frang.

In addition to the song programmes curated by Knežíková, the Chamber Series also includes some concerts from the No Tie series and a performance by the Belfiato Quintet to mark its 20th anniversary. The For the Future program series will offer a performance by the Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester. September will also see the final rounds of the Concertino Praga competition, now in two categories - Wind Instruments and Keyboard and Strings.

Organisers of Dvořák Prague said that last year's edition was attended by over 18,500 spectators, the highest in the festival's history. The event, which lasted 19 days, offered 28 concerts and ten side events.

You can find more information on the Dvořák Prague website.