Moderated rehearsal with Petr Popelka

Within a very short time, Petr Popelka has made a name for himself as one of the most inspiring conductors of his generation. The Czech has been Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra since the 2022/2023 season and Chief Conductor of the Norwegian Radio Orchestra in Oslo since August 2020.

In the 2022/2023 season, he will make his debut with the Gewandhaus Orchestra, Staatskapelle Berlin, Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, SWR Symphony Orchestra, WDR Symphony Orchestra, Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Orchestra sinfonica nazionale della RAI, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg, and Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, among others, and return to the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden, Vienna Symphony Orchestra (TV concert “Spring in Vienna”), Danish National Symphony Orchestra, and Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra. A new production of Strauss’ “Elektra” takes him to the Oslo Opera and Shostakovich’s “Nose” back to the Semperoper Dresden. Together with his orchestras from Prague and Oslo, he will also perform Schoenberg’s monumental “Gurre-Lieder.” Previous debuts have taken him to the Czech Philharmonic, NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchester, hr-Sinfonieorchester, Deutsche Radio Philharmonie and Mozarteumorchester Salzburg, among others.

In the 2019/2020 season, Petr Popelka was the first Conductor Fellow of the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra. He received important conducting impulses from Vladimir Kiradjiev and Alan Gilbert, having devoted more time to conducting since 2016. He received his musical education in his hometown Prague and in Freiburg. From 2010 to 2019, he was deputy principal double bass of the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden. In addition to conducting, composing occupies an important position in Petr Popelka’s artistic work.