In 2023, the Czech Philharmonic will traditionally take part in the music festivals Dvořák's Prague, Prague Spring and Smetana's Litomyšl. In November, the orchestra will support the tradition of the Karlovy Vary Variations for the third time. The Czech Philharmonic will play a total of 26 concerts on foreign stages. In addition to individual tours, the orchestra will tour Europe and Asia, always under the direction of its chief conductor Semyon Bychkov.
After a longish break caused by the Covid–19 pandemic, the Czech Philharmonic and Semyon Bychkov are heading back to Asia. Some of the concerts on this year’s tour have been rescheduled from their planned dates in 2021. The orchestra begins its tour with two concerts in South Korea, then it will appear in Japan seven times.
In past seasons, the participation of the Czech Philharmonic in a joint project with the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival has taken several forms. This year they are coming to the spa city with a programme from the Classical period that they will play twice under the baton of principal guest conductor Tomáš Netopil.
After a 25-year absence, the Czech Philharmonic returns to the German spa town Baden–Baden, where it last appeared at the local Festspielhaus under the baton of Vladimir Ashkenazy in 1999. This time, they are bringing Gustav Mahler’s monumental Third Symphony. Looking forward to working with Semyon Bychkov is the outstanding Fleur Barron.
In the spring, the orchestra will go on a tour of Spain, Austria, Germany, Belgium, and France. The 14 concerts include a pair of residencies, and there will be appearances in the most famous concert halls: the Auditorio Nacional in Madrid, Vienna’s Konzerthaus, Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie, the Isarphilharmonie in Munich, and Paris’s Philharmonie.
The national festival Smetana’s Litomyšl is a partner festival of the Czech Philharmonic, and the leading Czech orchestra brings major concert programmes here each year. This time, the three evening concerts will be divided between the orchestra’s principal guest conductors Jakub Hrůša and Tomáš Netopil.
In June, the Czech Philharmonic will bring to Dresden a programme consisting entirely of works by Bedřich Smetana. At the traditional Dresdner Musikfestspiele, the orchestra will play under the direction of its guest conductor Jakub Hrůša.
