Czech Philharmonic returns to Carnegie Hall for Year of Czech Music finale
The Year of Czech Music will culminate in early December with five concerts at New York’s iconic Carnegie Hall. Returning to this renowned venue for the first time since 2018, the Czech Philharmonic, led by Chief Conductor and Music Director Semyon Bychkov, will present three programmes of Czech music. I spoke with David Mareček, the head of Czech Philharmonic, to find out more about this special event.
An invitation to perform three nights at Carnegie Hall is a privilege granted to only a handful of visiting orchestras. What do you think made it possible for the Czech Philharmonic to earn this opportunity?
“It’s true that it’s a great privilege and I think that what is behind that invitation is the long-term work of my colleagues at the Czech Philharmonic. It all started in 2014 when we were invited for one concert with Jiří Bělohlávek as music director and that one concert was very successful. It was sold out and that led to a re-invitation in 2018 with two concerts, this time already with our current music director Maestro Semyon Bychkov.
“After this small residency we immediately started working on 2024 which is the Year of Czech Music, with many Czech composers’ anniversaries. And also the relationships between Clive Gillinson the CEO of Carnegie Hall and his team and between the team of the Czech Philharmonic have been very good.
“It means that we have been discussing programs and trying to create programs that also sell very well, which applies not only to the repertoire, but also to the choice of soloists. So shortly, it has been ten years of building the relationship itself and also gradually adding concerts that we perform in New York.”
Can you tell us a bit about what's planned for each of the three concert programs?
“We call it Czech Music Week in New York, so it's mostly Czech music, but not exclusively. There is a connection between the three concerts, and this connection is provided by concertos by Antonín Dvořák. So the first night will feature a cello concerto played by Yo-Yo Ma, the second night a violin concerto played by Gil Shaham, and the third night a piano concerto played by Daniil Trifonov. These are soloists that were agreed both by Carnegie Hall and us.
“And in the second part of each program, there will be a major work connected to the Czech Philharmonic. The first night will feature My Country by Smetana, exactly half of it, the first three tone poems Vyšehrad, Vltava and Šárka. The second night will feature the Mahler Symphony No. 5. Of course Mahler is an Austrian composer, who was born in a small town that is now part of the Czech Republic, and we consider Mahler one of our main composers. And in Mahler's music, there are influences of Austrian, German, Jewish, Czech, and other types of Central European music.
“And the third night will feature the Glagolitic Mass by Leoš Janáček, and there the Czech Philharmonic will be joined by four soloists, and by the Prague Philharmonic Choir, that is also part of our organization. And the choir will also perform a separate concert on the 6th of December, with Czech choral works. And on top of this, they will sing on the 4th of December at 2 p.m. on Times Square, a short 20-minute program for the general public.”
And that, I believe, will offer a mix of Czech carols and American gospel songs…
“Exactly, because that's already before Christmas, so it will be a program with a Christmas atmosphere.”
We should also mention that alongside the Czech Philharmonic and the Prague Philharmonic Choir, Czech Week at Carnegie Hall will also feature the Pavel Haas Quartet.
“Exactly, Pavel Haas Quartet is probably the most famous Czech chamber ensemble, definitely the most famous string quartet. There will be one more concert in the Bohemian National Hall on the first night, on Monday, December 2.
“That will bring together musicians from the Czech Philharmonic, namely the Orchestra Academy of the Czech Philharmonic, so the most talented students, and also students from the Royal Academy of Music in London, and American students from the United States Youth Orchestra that is connected directly to Carnegie Hall.
“So there will be four Czech students who will perform Dvořák's American Quartet, four American students that will perform an excerpt from Wynton Marsalis' Quartet, quartet, and British students, who will perform Elgar, and then all of them together will form a chamber orchestra led by our concertmaster, Jiří Vodička, and they will play together Dvořák's string serenade. So this will be the very beginning of the week.”
What about Czech audiences? Will they have a chance to experience the unique atmosphere at Carnegie Hall?
“Definitely. First of all, we are bringing with us a lot of our supporters from the Czech Republic who want to experience live the atmosphere of New York and the Carnegie Hall concert. But even more important is the date of December 4. Because we will stream, for the first time, part of our concert to audiences abroad, and of course, most importantly, our home Czech audience.
“So the three poems of Smetana Má Vlast, Vyšehrad, Vltava and Šárka, will be streamed on December 4 at p.m., Prague time. And they will be available to anybody who wants to experience the New York concerts because they will be on the YouTube channel of the Czech Philharmonic and it will be free of charge for everybody who wants to see it.
Finally, what does it mean for the Czech Philharmonic to perform in one of the world's most famous concert halls?
“That is always an exciting experience for everybody, because in the most famous halls, whether it be Suntory Hall in Tokyo, Carnegie Hall in New York or the Royal Albert Hall, you always feel the tradition, and you always get a great audience because these halls have very loyal and very educated audiences.
“So it is always a great excitement and privilege. Of course, we're nervous because it is important to play well, but I think that above all, it's a very special occasion for the musicians and they always very much look forward to it.”
