Internationally acclaimed Czech conductor Jakub Hrůša will become the Czech Philharmonic’s Chief Conductor and Music Director from September 2028. His initial contract is for five years, with both parties seeing the appointment as the beginning of a long-term relationship and expecting that they will wish to continue the collaboration further into the future.
He will succeed the current Chief Conductor and Music Director, Semyon Bychkov, who announced last spring that he would step down after completing his tenth season with the orchestra. In a new step for the Czech Philharmonic, Jakub Hrůša’s artistic vision as Chief Conductor and Music Director will be supported by a generous gift from Renáta Kellnerová.
“The Czech Philharmonic is one of the world’s foremost orchestras today. It combines a unique tradition with extraordinary potential for artistic growth. Our country’s leading orchestra not only sets the tone of musical life in the Czech Republic in a special way, but also performs with breathtaking success on the world’s most prestigious stages. I am overjoyed and deeply honoured that the Czech Philharmonic has chosen to align its path with mine from 2028.”
— Jakub Hrůša
Jakub Hrůša currently serves as Chief Conductor of the Bamberg Symphony, continuing in this position until 2029; and from September of this year he becomes Music Director of The Royal Opera at Covent Garden in London. He has previously served as Principal Guest Conductor of the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, the Philharmonia Orchestra in London, and Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra. He was Opus Klassik’s Conductor of the Year in 2023, a double winner at the Gramophone Awards in 2024, and is the recipient of several important prizes and honorary awards in Germany, the UK and the Czech Republic.
He is also a much-loved guest conductor with the world’s leading orchestras, including the Berlin Philharmonic, Vienna Philharmonic, Munich Philharmonic, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra and Zurich Tonhalle Orchestra, the Staatskapelle Dresden and Staatskapelle Berlin, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Lucerne Festival Orchestra, Orchestre de Paris and Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, the Mahler Chamber Orchestra and the Chamber Orchestra of Europe – and in the US with the New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Symphony Orchestra and The Cleveland Orchestra.
Hrůša is highly regarded internationally not only for his interpretations of repertoire from the 18th to the 20th centuries, but also for his exceptional performances of Czech music from Smetana to the present day.
“With Jakub Hrůša, the Czech Philharmonic gains a world-class Chief Conductor whose artistic achievements continue to grow from strength to strength. Yet this new relationship is of course a natural continuation of an already long and successful partnership. On behalf of the Czech Philharmonic team, I can confidently say that Jakub Hrůša is the best possible choice to continue the exceptional work of our current Chief Conductor, Semyon Bychkov. I thank the members of the orchestra’s Artistic Council and the orchestral group leaders for their unanimous support, as well as our founder, the Ministry of Culture, and our patrons and sponsors, without whom we could not realize our artistic plans.”
— David Mareček, CEO of the Czech Philharmonic
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