Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra

The Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra (PRSO) is one of the leading Czech orchestras today. Since the 2022/2023 season, it has been led by Chief Conductor and Artistic Director Petr Popelka. Robert Jindra has held the position of Principal Guest Conductor for the third consecutive year.

In the upcoming 2025/2026 concert season, PRSO will welcome many distinguished musicians, including violinists Christian Tetzlaff and Marc Bouchkov, conductors Jonathan Nott, Tomáš Hanus, Erina Yashima, and Andris Poga. Audience can also look forward to performances by pianists Pierre-Laurent Aimard and Isata Kanneh-Mason, as well as vocalists Szilvia Vörös and Günther Groissbeck. A particularly exceptional project will be the performance of Igor Stravinsky's o­ratorio Oedipus Rex, conducted by Chief Conductor Petr Popelka, as well as a rendition of Camille Saint-Saëns' Organ Symphony under the baton of Robert Jindra, featuring soloist Christian Schmitt. Czech artists will also be prominently featured, including violinist Josef Špaček, soprano Kateřina Kněžíková, cellist Tomáš Jamník, and pianists Martin Kasík and Marek Kozák.

In recent years, the orchestra has collaborated with many prominent conductors, including Omer Meir Wellber, Cornelius Meister, Ilan Volkov, Wayne Marshall, Ion Marin, Stephan Asbury, Alexander Liebreich, Michał Nesterowicz, Anu Tali, and Jessica Cottis. Czech conductors who have worked with PRSO include Jakub Hrůša, Tomáš Netopil, Petr Altrichter, and Robert Kružík.

The orchestra has also performed with world-renowned soloists such as pianists Krystian Zimerman and Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, violinists Isabelle Faust, Frank Peter Zimmermann, Renaud Capuçon, Gidon Kremer, and María Dueñas, cellists Gautier Capuçon, Daniel MüllerSchott, István Várdai, and Steven Isserlis, trombonist Christian Lindberg, and jazz musicians Brad Mehldau and Avishai Cohen. Among vocalists, notable names include Asmik Grigorian, Elisabeth Teige, Olga Bezsmertna, Michael Weinius, and from the Czech music scene, Lukáš Vondráček, Ivo Kahánek, Jan Bartoš, Josef Špaček, Jan Mráček, Adam Plachetka, Simona Šaturová, Petr Nekoranec, and Vilém Veverka

PRSO is deeply committed to performing works by contemporary Czech composers, including Miroslav Srnka, Ondřej Adámek, Martin Smolka, Pavel Zemek Novák, Jan Ryant Dřízal, Šimon Voseček, Jana Vöröšová, Jan Klusák, Jiří Kadeřábek, Lukáš Hurník, Zbyněk Matějů, and Ondřej Štochl.

A significant part of the orchestra's ac­tivities is recording. One of its most acclaimed projects is the album Má vlast, featuring Bedřich Smetana’s symphonic work. Released at the end of 2024, the album took three years to complete and has already received the Editor’s Choice award from Gramophone magazine, the Diapason d’Or ARTE award from the prestigious French magazine Diapason, and a nomination for the Czech Music Academy Award Anděl 2024. In 2024, SOČR expanded its discography with several new recordings across different musical genres. Notable releases include the album Forgotten Czech Piano Concertos, featuring works by Karel Kovařovic, Pavel Bořkovec, and Vítězslava Kaprálová. In the realm of jazz and contemporary music, several projects were created in collaboration with composers and performers such as Luboš Soukup (Scandinavian Impressions), Jaromír Honzák (The Blues of a String Hanging in the Wind), Michal Rataj and Oskar Török (Letters from Sounds), and Vít Křišťan (Mandala). Clarinetist Anna Paulová recorded the album Clarinet Metamorphoses with the orchestra under the baton of Tomáš Brauner, while the recording ’O sole mio, featuring Daniel Matoušek, was conducted by Jan Kučera.

PRSO regularly performs as part of its subscription concert cycles in the Dvořák Hall of the Rudolfinum, the Smetana Hall of the Municipal House, Bethlehem Chapel, and other venues such as Forum Karlín and Czech Radio’s Studio 1. The orchestra is a frequent guest at prestigious festivals, including Prague Spring, Dvořák Prague Festival, Smetana’s Litomyšl, the Leoš Janáček International Music Festival, and the Český Krumlov International Music Festival. Additionally, it often performs on international stages across Europe and Japan.

www.socr.rozhlas.cz