Dvořák’s Concertos

Veronika Böhmová was born into a musical family in České Budějovice. She started playing the piano at the age of five under the guidance of Prof. Marie Šimková Kotrčová. She completed her doctoral studies at HAMU in Prague in the class of prof. Ivan Klánský and Meisteklasse in the class of prof. Arkadi Zenzipér at the Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber in Dresden. She is a laureate of numerous national and international competitions, among her greatest achievements are the promotion to the 32 best pianists in the world at the Artur Rubinstein Competition in Tel Aviv in 2014, 2nd prize at the Anton G. Rubistein Competition in Dresden in 2012, promotion to the semi-finals at the Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels in 2010 and 2nd prize at the Maria Canals Competition in Barcelona in 2007. Veronika has presented her recitals to audiences in the Czech Republic (Prague Spring, Prague Autumn), Austria, Germany, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Belgium, Italy, France, Switzerland, USA, Mexico, Japan and China. In 2014 Veronika recorded a CD for Supraphon with compositions by S. Prokofiev and I. Stravinsky. She regularly collaborates with leading European and international orchestras and currently has 30 piano concertos in her repertoire. In 2016, she made her debut with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra alongside the Israeli conductor Lahav Shani with a piano concerto by J. Páleníček. In the same year, she achieved her greatest success to date, performing at the famous Isaac Stern Auditorium – Carnegie Hall in New York.

David Hernych is a student of the Prague Conservatory in the class of Prof. Jiří Fišer. In the past he studied with Prof. Ludmila Štětinová at the ZUŠ and at GMHS (Prague Secondary School of Music) with Prof. Jiří Novák. His greatest achievements include first prizes at the Josef Micky and Jaroslav Kocian competitions, the main prize at the Summer Music Academy in Kroměříž and victory at the Václav Hudeček Academy in Luhačovice.
As a soloist, he has collaborated with leading Czech conductors such as Tomáš Netopil, Jakub Klecker, Petr Vronský, Radek Baborák, Robert Kružík, Marko Ivanović, Martin Peschík and Ondřej Vrabec. He has performed several times with the Prague Symphony Orchestra. He has performed several times with the Prague Symphony Orchestra FOK. In recent seasons he has also played solo with the orchestras of the SOČR, ZSO Mariánské Lázně, FBM Zlín and Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra Olomouc.
With maestro Václav Hudeček (pupil of David Oistrakh) he played solo at festivals in Prague (Prague Music Festival), Litoměřice, Roudnice nad Labem and Luhačovice. As a chamber player, he shared the stage with Josef Špáček at the Dvořák Prague Festival. With the Siebeneichener Quartett he won the Bohuslav Martinů Competition. He is a member of the Academy of Chamber Music and works closely with Tomáš Jamník.

Daniel Petrásek began studying music and cello at the age of nine at the ZUŠ Semily with Miroslava Jeřábková, and later at the ZUŠ Turnov with Marta Opletalová. In 2005 he entered the Prague Conservatoire in the class of Tomáš Strašil. After graduating from the Prague Conservatoire, he continued his studies at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague under Mikael Ericsson. In his further master’s studies he graduated as a member of the Ančerl Quartet in chamber music – string quartet under Jiří Panocha.

During his studies he received valuable advice from important Czech and foreign musicians (František Pišinger, Evžen Rattay, David Sella, Jaroslav Kulhan, Michal Kaňka, Christophe Coin, Rudolf Leopold, Vovka Askenazy, Christoph Richter) and participated in a number of performance and master classes (ISA Semmering, performance courses in Litomyšl, Soběslav, Teplice).

In addition to his artistic activities, he is intensively involved in music pedagogy. In 2013-2016 he taught cello at the ZUŠ Česká Lípa and since 2014 he has been teaching cello and music at the ZUŠ Učňovská in Prague 9. Together with cellist Vojtěch Urban, he founded and regularly organizes Cellování, a workshop for young cellists, mostly students of the ZUŠ.

Since September 2017 he has been working as concertmaster of the West Bohemian Symphony Orchestra. He plays a master instrument from the workshop of Karel Josef Dvořák, Prague 1944.

Radek Baborák, chief conductor of the West Bohemian Symphony Orchestra, is one of the most prominent personalities on the world music scene. In more than 35 years of international performances as a solo horn player and conductor, he has earned an exceptional reputation with the most important orchestras and festivals. With his extensive experience as a horn player, Baborák brings a unique perspective and expertise to his conducting career. His conducting style is known for its precision, musicality and deep understanding of the pieces he performs. He is able to interpret and convey the emotions and nuances of the music, creating captivating and memorable concert experiences that are appreciated by critics and music-loving audiences alike. His repertoire ranges from works by the masters of Baroque, Classical, Romantic and 20th century music to works by living composers whose works he has premiered.

As a soloist he has appeared with the Berlin and Vienna Philharmonics and many other top orchestras under conductors such as James Lewine, Sir Simon Rattle, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Sir Roger Norrington, Jiří Bělohlávek, Seiji Ozawa, Daniel Barenboim and Vladimir Ashkenazy.

In 2011 he expanded his musical career to include conducting. His mentor is Maestro Seiji Ozawa, whom he assists with the Mito Chamber Orchestra, which he regularly conducts.
He founded and artistically directs the Czech Sinfonietta Orchestra, which performs at renowned festivals in the Czech Republic such as Prague Spring, Dvořák’s Prague, Smetana Litomyšl and others. He has achieved extraordinary success at these festivals, accompanying soloists such as Marta Argerich, Jefim Bronfmann, Sergej Nakarjakov, Ricardo Galliano and Guy Braunstein.
As a conductor he has worked with the Mozarteum Salzburg, the Berlin Symphony Orchestra, the Thuringian Philharmonic, the Tokyo Philharmonic, the New Japan Symphony Orchestra, the Sapporo Symphony Orchestra, the SOČR, the FOK, the Prague Philharmonic and others.

Since 2016 he has been the artistic director of the Prague Chamber Soloists.
He is intensively involved in chamber music, especially with the Baborak Ensemble, which is regularly invited to Mozartwoche Salzburg, Pierre Boulez Saal in Berlin and on tour in Europe and Japan. For his ensemble he creates unique versions of works by composers such as J.S. Bach and Astor Piazzolla.

His musical partners in the more than 100 music festivals he has participated in include legends such as Daniel Barenboim, Marta Argerich, Heinrich Schif, Janine Jansen, Francoise Leleux, Emanuel Pahud, Ian Bostridge, Julian Rachlin and others.
As a solo horn player he has performed with the Czech Philharmonic, the Munich Philharmonic and the Berlin Philharmonic.
He is a laureate of the most prestigious competitions in Geneva, Markneukirchen and ARD Munich.
He has dozens of award-winning recordings for EMI, Sony Classic, Suprafon, Octavia Records, Animal Music and Hänsler Classic.

As an associate professor he has taught at the Fondazione Arturo Toscanini in Bologna, Escuela Reina Sophia in Madrid, Hamu Prague and TOHO University in Tokyo. He is currently a visiting professor at the Barenboim-Said Academy in Berlin and a mentor at the MenArt Education Academy.
During the pandemic he initiated fundraisers for independent artists and subsequently supported Ukrainian musicians. Hundreds of colleagues supported these activities.

Radek Baborák is a guest conductor of the Yamagata Symphony Orchestra, a permanent soloist of the Brandenburg State Orchestra and in 2024 will make his conducting debut with the Slovak Philharmonic Bratislava, the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra in London and the National Philharmonic Orchestra in Lviv.