programme:
The Bohuslav Martinů Foundation Competition has been shedding light on new talents in the disciplines of piano, violin, violoncello, voice, harpsichord, wind instruments, and chamber ensembles for the past 27 years. Recent laureates include the clarinettist Anna Paulová, the pianist Matouš Zukal, as well as the violinist Roman Patočka, the cellist Tomáš Jamník, or the pianist Ivo Kahánek, and many others. Last year’s winners were Robin Červinek (baritone) and Vilém Vlček (violoncello), who will present their art at a concert on 10 December.
“The aim of the competition is to promote Bohuslav Martinů’s compositions among young, talented musicians and to support the performance of works by other Czech composers of the past decades,” the competition rules declare. This commitment is reflected in the competition format, which requires both a composition by Bohuslav Martinů for the given instrument and a work by some other Czech composer written after 1960, along with a work from the global repertoire of 18th- and 19th-century music.
Similar conditions apply to this year’s disciplines, that is, violin and chamber ensemble from trios to sextets with piano. Audiences can look forward to repertoire by Martinů, who was himself a violinist and who wrote impressive and often technically demanding works for the instrument, or to his chamber works marked by a generous breadth of musical inspirations.
Martinů Hall, Liechtenstein Palace, Prague