Czech Philharmonic ⬩ Jakub Hrůša

In the music world, there have been polemical debates for years about how orchestras should plan their programming. The core of the dispute is over whether the programming directors or the performers should have the last word. The programme of the fifth concert in Subscription Series B is an example of a programme put together by the conductor. He was guided by the sound effect of the compositions on the listeners and the core of the programme was determined by a long-term recording project. With Jakub Hrůša, the Czech Philharmonic is recording the complete orchestral works of Josef Suk, consisting of both large-scale and several shorter compositions, including the famous Meditation on the Old Czech Chorale 'St. Wenceslas' and the Sokol movement march Towards a New Life, with which Suk won an anonymous composition competition. Suk thus became the main composer of the evening and Jakub Hrůša was faced with the rather difficult task of building a logical yet musically attractive programme around Suk’s music.

Bedřich Smetana’s Swedish symphonic poems belong to his popular works and they are frequently performed abroad. The Suk as well as the Smetana triptych are also a clear demonstration of the characteristic features and stylistic differences of the two composers and they represent the best of Czech orchestral music. The number three, which accompanies us throughout the evening, also represents the three composers, opening with Leoš Janáček, whose Violin Concerto will be played by Czech Philharmonic concertmaster Jan Mráček, winner of the Fritz Kreisler International Competition in Vienna.