33rd Concert Season of the Prague Philharmonia

Orchestral Series A

Prague Philharmonia's thirty-third season is conceived as a carefully considered arc — from the Baroque to the present day, from intimate confession to monumental gesture. Music Director Emmanuel Villaume has shaped a dramaturgy that is not merely a survey of styles, but a journey: eight evenings, eight musical chapters, together forming a single compelling narrative.

The opening concert serves as a bridge — between Europe and America, between home and exile, between tradition and the New World. Martinů's Sinfonietta La Jolla recalls his homeland from across the Atlantic, while American composer Samuel Barber wrote his Violin Concerto on European soil. The soloist will be Canadian violinist Blake Pouliot, with whom we made a triumphant appearance at Carnegie Hall — and the programme carries echoes of our acclaimed American tour from the previous season. Above it all soars Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, a timeless testament to human will and the struggle against fate.

The second evening belongs to energy and fire. Mexican conductor Iván López Reynoso brings temperament and spark, while pianist Andrew von Oeyen unleashes Prokofiev's Third Piano Concerto like a musical firework display. Schubert's Ninth then gives the orchestra full room to shine.

Petr Altrichter opens the gates to spiritual depth in the third subscription concert. Dvořák's Biblical Songs, performed in the atmosphere of All Saints' Day, become a quiet moment of reflection — a prayer in sound. Shostakovich's Fifteenth Symphony, his last, offers the opposite: a reckoning with a life lived, suffused with irony, memory, and bitter wisdom.

The fourth evening plays with space itself. Conductor Oscar Jockel will set the orchestra resonating from every corner of Dvořák Hall — in the spirit of Gabrieli's legendary Venice performances. Then comes Grieg's Piano Concerto, a confession of the Nordic soul, delivered by Charles Richard-Hamelin, laureate of the Chopin Competition.

The fifth concert places the human voice at its heart. Music Director Villaume and countertenor Hugh Cutting lead us into the worlds of Mozart and Gluck — a universe of emotion concealed within simplicity. Mozart's Linz Symphony brings the evening to a close with lightness and clarity, a joyful breath of air after the voice's intimate storytelling.

The sixth evening bridges Baroque and Classicism. Conductor Marc Minkowski presents Rameau with distinctly French elegance, and Haydn and Schubert with an exhilarating, historically informed vitality. The Prague Philharmonia's own traditions meet a fresh and inspiring perspective.

The seventh concert unfolds as a stimulating European dialogue. Beethoven's Fourth Symphony might be playfully called his "Polish" symphony — he wrote it during a stay with his Silesian patron — and it will be conducted by Polish maestro Łukasz Borowicz, who also brings music by the great Polish composer of the twentieth century, Henryk Górecki. The rugged lyricism of the North arrives with Sibelius's Violin Concerto, performed by the outstanding Jan Mráček.

The final concert of Subscription Series A brings together, under the baton of our Music Director, an iconic pairing: Dvořák's deeply personal and melodically immediate Cello Concerto in B minor and Brahms's heroic, magnificently constructed First Symphony. The subscription season closes with an evening that can, without exaggeration, be called a cathedral in music.

Chamber Series K

In the 33rd season, the Chamber Music Series K is based on the leitmotif of Musical (Non)Friendship. The entire season also marks the 200th anniversary of the death of Ludwig van Beethoven (died in Vienna on 26 March 1827), featuring special concerts in January (K5) and March (K7) dedicated to him. At the January (K5) concert, the founding members of the orchestra represented by the Prague Philharmonia Wind Quintet will also commemorate Prof. Jiří Bělohlávek.

The Chamber Music Series will open with the Dvořák Piano Quartet (K1). This first chamber music concert will highlight the friendship between Dvořák and Brahms. For the first time, Vivaldi’s Four Seasons will be heard within the Prague Philharmonia’s Chamber Music Series (K4), reflecting the Italian composer’s friendship with his patron, Count Wenzel Morzin. Other distinguished friends were Bohuslav Martinů and the Czech piano virtuoso Josef Páleníček. Their music will be presented by the Smetana Trio headed by Páleníček’s son (K2). The Chamber Music Series will also examine the friendships between individual performers and composers. This includes, for example, Kateřina Horká, a contemporary Czech composer whose premiere will be performed by the Kalabis Quintet (K3), or the February concert (K6) for four violins, featuring members of the Prague Philharmonia.

The April concert (K8) given by the Trio Incendio is not only about the friendship but also about the lack of friendship between two French composers – Claude Debussy and Camille Saint-Saëns. The performers of the Chamber Music Series include Prague Philharmonia’s concert masters Pavla Tesařová and Romana Špačková; section principal Lukáš Pospíšil (K7), bassoonists Tomáš Františ and Petr Sedlák (K9); and many others.

The 33rd season of the Chamber Music Series will be crowned with the final June concert (K10) with the Bennewitz Quartet and the clarinetist Jan Brabec.

Lobkowicz Series

In the intimate and elegant ambience of the Lobkowicz Palace at Prague Castle, the Prague Philharmonia will show its unique virtuosity and energy to those who share a passion for the beauty of art. The Lobkowicz Series is designed as a donor program. Your purchase directly supports the artistic activities of Prague Philharmonia.

Contemporary Music Series S

In the 33rd season, the Contemporary Music Series S will offer exceptional musical experiences, contemporary composers as guests at individual concerts, interesting debates, and outstanding performers from among the members of the Prague Philharmonia.

We will keep the traditional format of six concerts. The current young generation of Czech composers will be represented by Haštal Hapka and Darja Kukal Moiseeva, while contemporary Slovakia will be represented by five young Slovak composers. One night we will hear international music represented by György Ligeti and Elliot Carter. The Contemporary Music Series S is a challenging platform that features outstanding figures who work across several fields and leave a noticeable mark on Czech culture. Such is Milan Knížák, but also the three composers known from previous seasons – Vladimír Franz, Zdenek Merta, and Vadim Petrov. The music of all these composers will be presented this season together with their interesting comments on their work as well as contemporary culture.

The Contemporary Music Series is a musical talk show full of music, presenting world and Czech premieres and interesting debates. Come to the Švanda Theater and hear for yourself how wonderful contemporary music is!

Concerts for Children (Series D, Series E)

The program of the 2026/2027 season would not be complete without the popular family concerts. Guess what we have built for you – a real, genuine time machine! It rattles, it creaks, it spins, it jumps – and you land... hopefully close to where and when you originally wanted to be! Yes, the machine is a little glitchy, but we are working on it!

Help us fine-tune the time machine and join us on four joyful concert adventures that will take audiences, their guides, and the entire orchestra deep into history and far into the future. You will meet Egyptian pharaohs, Antonín Dvořák, and even tamed mammoths. But beware – returning to our time will not be easy. It will require courage, skill, and cooperation from both the audiences and the orchestra!

Concerts in Series D start at 10:00, concerts in Series E start at 12:00, their program is the same.

For children aged 5 to 10.

Special gala concert

Following the close of our 2026/2027 orchestral subscription series we look forward to a special evening devoted to the music of Wagner, whose operas are among the most powerful achievements in 19th-century music. To join music director Emmanuel Villaume on stage, we welcome two truly outstanding soloists: acclaimed bass-baritone Nicholas Brownlee, one of the stars of the approaching season at the celebrated Bayreuth Festival, and distinguished mezzo-soprano Jennifer Feinstein.

The dramatic overture to Der fliegende Holländer sets the scene, with its turbulent orchestral energy so characteristic of Wagner's early mature style, following which Brownlee takes centre stage in the powerful aria Die Frist ist um, portraying the tormented figure of the cursed mariner. From here we move on to Lohengrin, whose luminous overture constitutes one of Wagner's most atmospheric inspirations. The duet Du wilde Seherin brings together vocal drama and orchestral writing in music of heightened theatrical intensity.

Our second half is devoted to scenes from Die Walküre, including the thrilling Ride of the Valkyries, one of the best-known orchestral passages in all the operatic repertoire. Duets between Brownlee and Feinstein explore the emotional conflicts at the heart of the drama, culminating in Wotan's grief-filled farewell. The evening concludes with the shimmering orchestral Magic Fire Music, bringing Wagner's expansive dramatic vision to a blazing close.

Performing Wagner's sumptuously scored music in concert is both an immense joy and a considerable challenge, requiring as it does a large orchestral apparatus with extended string sections and additional wind players and placing considerable demands on all performers in terms of precision, power, and a feel for style and drama. This promises to be an evening of exceptional artistry, emotional intensity and joy in rising to that challenge together, as well as a most magnificent postscript to the Prague Philharmonia's 33rd concert season.