Saint Wenceslas Music Festival
The St. Wenceslas Music Festival (Svatováclavský hudební festival, SHF) is the largest international festival of sacred and early music in the Czech Republic. Since its foundation in 2004, SHF has been held annually in Ostrava as well as in many churches across the Moravian-Silesian region during the month of September. The first ten editions were organised between the two public holidays, 28 September – 28 October. Traditionally, more than twenty concerts celebrate the feast of St. Wenceslas, the symbol of Czech statehood.
The fundamental aim of SHF is to present an historically informed interpretation of early and sacred music in sacred spaces, in an effort to lend its original meaning to this music. The high quality festival dramaturgy of SHF Director, prof. Igor Františák, Ph.D. (a renowned clarinettist and academic at the University of Ostrava, who with his team has managed to organise more than 1,300 concerts) is guided by three main lines: monumental vocal-instrumental concerts, programmes striving to authentically interpret early music, as well as chamber and solo projects, which are supplemented each year by non-traditional and crossover projects. SHF continuously supports young talent, presenting laureates of prestigious competitions, new premieres and unique projects (crossover projects, ballet, video art, and film in the church). It also patriotically fosters genius loci by organizing concerts from Moravian-Silesian natives of European artistic parameters and works by forgotten composers who have lived and worked in the region since the Baroque era. SHF’s prestigious ensembles in residence include Collegium 1704, Collegium Marianum, and the Czech Philharmonic Choir of Brno.
SHF’s accompanying programme has expanded to include screenings of art and documentary films with musicology insights, music-educational workshops for children, and discussions with artists. SHF presents concerts at a high European level with both domestic and international performers, for which it has been repeatedly awarded by the expert committee of the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic as one of the five best professional art projects in the section of music festivals (in 2019 it was ranked fourth after the Prague Spring, Smetana’s Litomyšl and Dvořák’s Prague festivals). All concerts implemented by SHF are audiovisually recorded. The SHF official photographer since its very inception has been Ivan Korč. For more details on each festival year see below. Download the official logos here.
MUSICAL JOURNEYS
Since 2009, SHF has also organised a year-round concert series in churches known as Four Seasons. A new project format was introduced in 2018 under the name Musical Journeys. Through this year-long series, it now presents exclusive musical productions ranging from artistic music to jazz to folklore in the most architecturally and acoustically interesting monuments of the Moravian-Silesian region (churches, chateaus, former industrial sites). Now on the new website: https://hudebnivylety.cz/
A RESONANT REGION – “I deeply feel the cultural values associated with our region and I try to highlight them through concerts given by Moravian-Silesian natives such as Martina Janková, Kateřina Kněžíková, Jiří Vodička, and Martin Kasík, as well as by performing musical works written by forgotten composers who have lived and worked here since the Baroque era. For twenty years we have been able to hold not just a large-scale festival, but also a year-long project called Musical Journeys. We bring first-class projects to the smallest communities in the region and gorgeous spaces with an ambition to make them truly resonate,” says Prof. Igor Františák.
TECHNICAL MONUMENTS – Visitors were already taken through a musical journey to the technical sites of chain dressing rooms and the guild hall of the Michal Coalmine in Ostrava-Michálkovice, which have been preserved from 1915 (active mining took place until 1993). The unique spaces resonated with the works of Leoš Janáček performed by the Zemlinsky Quartet, a recital of phenomenal violinist Esther Yoo, as well as the Jewish klezmer music by the Létající rabín (English: Flying Rabbi) band, an authentic burst of big-band music by the Cotatcha Orchestra, and a Christmas play with puppets from the Collegium Marianum. Live music also added a new dimension to the Tatra Museum, the 15th century Bartošovice Mill, and the Water Tower in Opava.
CHATEAU JEWELS – Our efforts to interpret music within its original meaning has traditionally been facilitated through an excellent collaboration with the Kunín Chateau, where the unique historical basset horns of the Lotz Trio (one of five ensembles in the world) were played, but also at the castles and chateaus of Bruntál, Kravaře, Frýdek, Slezské Rudoltice, and Žerotín in Nový Jičín, among others. The newly reconstructed Nová Horka Chateau near Studénka is gradually becoming a festival residence, where some of the most interesting projects take place every year. In 2020, for example, masterpieces by the greats Beethoven and Schubert were performed here by leading Czech performers (the Bennewitz Quartet, including Czech Philharmonic soloists), who created this octet specifically for the festival performance. The live recording was then released on an award-winning CD.
CHURCH ATMOSPHERE – the Musical Journeys project also accentuates Easter and Advent with its concerts – whether the “leaning” church of St. Peter of Alcantara in Karviná, the phenomenal frescoes in the otherwise closed Swedish Chapel in Opava, or in the wooden churches of the towns of Albrechtice and Kunčice pod Ondřejníkem. The churches fit perfectly within September’s St. Wenceslas Music Festival, which promises unique moments as promised in its motto A Concert in a Church is Truly an Experience.
MUSIC WITHOUT BORDERS
Newly in 2019, SHF has started to intensely and systematically work with top-notch Polish ensembles towards the close and logical cultural interconnectedness of Czech-Polish Silesia in based on the collaboration of artistic leaders of the regions, which promises a high-performance quality. The pilot project of this intention was the creation of the Czech-Polish project Music without Borders.
History of the St. Wenceslas Music Festival
SHF – TIME OF BIRTH, STATUTES OF THE ASSOCIATION (2003)
The St. Wenceslas Music Festival developed into the largest sacred music festival in the Czech Republic in the formerly heavily communist Moravian-Silesian region. Concerts are held exclusively in the region’s sacred spaces, interesting in terms of their acoustics and architecture. The “St. Wenceslas Music Festival Association” was created as an initiative of an Ostrava-based group of artists, musical theorists, and music and art aficionados in June 2003. The Association was registered on 17 June 2003 by the Ministry of the Interior of the Czech Republic and meets all formal requirements required for its activities. At its founding meeting the members unanimously elected Prof. Igor Františák, Ph.D. as statutory representative (the St. Wenceslas Music Festival Association Chair) on behalf of SHF. The current SHF Association members are: Jakub Černohorský, concertmaster of Janáček Philharmonic Orchestra Ostrava, Eva Dřízgová-Jirušová, a prominent soprano of National Moravian-Silesian Theatre Opera and lecturer at Faculty of Fine Arts and Music, University of Ostrava (FU UO), Igor Františák, clarinettist, lecturer at the same Faculty and FMG Artists art agency director, as well as Halina Františáková, violinist, teacher, director of the Presto art agency (her deceased father Josef Ptak was a founding member), Paolo Gatto, Italian conductor, pianist and lecturer at FU UO, Ludmila Harudová, academic painter Karel Haruda’s widow (who was a founding member), Pavla Kovalová, clarinettist and teacher, primary music school director, Jan Kvapil, flutist and teacher, Michael Ruman, sound engineer, Josef Swierkosz, pedagogue, former primary music school director, Veronika Ševčíková, lecturer at the Faculty of Education, University of Ostrava, Tomáš Thon, organist and pedagogue, and finally, Lukáš Varaja, bassist and IT manager. To make a list complete, Igor Horváth, former director of Czech Radio Ostrava, was also a founding member.
SHF is funded with the support of the City of Ostrava, the Moravian-Silesian Region and its respective municipalities and towns, and the Ministry of Culture. Czech Television has been the main media partner for many years.
SHF – BETWEEN TWO PUBLIC HOLIDAYS (2004–2012)
2004
The first SHF took place in St. Vojtěch Church in Opava on Saint Wenceslas Day, 28 September 2004 with a concert by Martina Janková and Camerata Janáček (programme: Suk’s Meditation on the Saint Wenceslas Chorale, Stamic’s Synfonia, Mozart’s concert arias for soprano and orchestra). The SHF offered performances from the Wallinger Quartet, Stadler Clarinet Quartet, Slovak Musica Aeterna, Janáček Chamber Orchestra, and Camerata Janáček, as well as violinists Jiří Vodička and Martina Bačová, and a themed evening by Alfred Strejček and Jitka Molavcová accompanied by Josef Fojta (drums) and David Burda (clarinet), where the play Jan z Teplé Oráč a smrt (English: The Ploughman from Bohemia) (1401) was performed. For the first time in the Moravian-Silesian region, the Baroque ensemble Collegium Marianum led by Jana Semerádová performed with soloists Hana Blažíková and Marián Krejčík. A total of 31 concerts of this ‘musical marathon’ had a single admission fee of 50 CZK and ended with Dvořák’s opus Stabat mater in the Cathedral of the Divine Saviour in the Ostrava historical centre on 28 October (Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava [JFO], Moravian Chamber Choir, soloists Eva Dřízgová-Jirušová, Jana Sýkorová, Martin Gurbaľ, Jaroslav Dvorský).
2005
The second edition of SHF opened with Schola Gregoriana Pragensis, followed by concerts by the Prague Jazz Sextet with Alfred Strejček and trumpeter Paolo Bacchino, the Bohdan Warchal Slovak Chamber Orchestra with David Danel, and the Musica Divina Praga ensemble to name but a few. That year, a total of 31 concerts were organised with a split admission fee. For the first time, the SHF featured the magnificent Mass in B minor by Johann Sebastian Bach (conducted by Roman Válek and performed by Solamente Naturali, Ars Brunensis Chorus, soloists Anna Mikolajczyk, Piotr Olech, Marek Olbrzymek and Adam Plachetka). The concert was recorded by Czech Television. Jakub Hrůša, then an emerging conducting star, also made his first appearance, crowning the second year of SHF with Dvořák’s Requiem (JFO, Slovak Philharmonic Choir Bratislava, soloists Eva Dřízgová-Jirušová, Jana Wallingerová, Tomáš Krejčiřík, and Richard Novák). The St. Wenceslas Music Festival was the first organiser to bring ensembles and artists who specialise in the historically informed performance of early music to the Moravian-Silesian region. A festival CD was recorded for the first time, and annually since.
2006
The third edition of SHF was opened by PKF – Prague Philharmonia with German mezzo-soprano and pianist Veronica Amarres. Baroque ensembles specialising in the authentic performance of early music began to appear with increasing frequency, the most notable of which were L’Orfeo Baroque Orchestra with violinist Elizabeth Wallfisch, oboe d’amore player Carin van Heerden, Solamente Naturali, Collegium Marianum with Swiss countertenor Alex Potter, and the Austrian ensemble L’ORFEO. The Festival hosted 32 concerts in total, which also included distinct and unconventional projects in terms of their genre – e.g., 6D Project: Dimensions of Silence (David Doružka – guitar, Dan Dlouhý – drums and David Danel – violin), and the legendary dulcimer music Technik with Jan Rokyta. The final concert was performed as per a new tradition at the Cathedral of the Divine Saviour on 28 October 2006 with Verdi’s Requiem (JFO, Czech Philharmonic Choir Brno [ČFSB], soloists Eva Dřízgová-Jirušová, Veronika Hajnová, Gianluca Zampieri, Martin Gurbaľ).
2007
The fourth edition was a turning point for the SHF, as it featured two major ensembles – the Pavel Haas Quartet (which in subsequent years became one of the most highly regarded string quartets in the world) and the Baroque ensemble Collegium 1704 led by Václav Luks, which has been the SHF’s orchestra in residence ever since. Their performance of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion was certainly one of the most memorable experiences filmed by Noe TV in the newly renovated St. Wenceslas Church in Opava. In addition to these ensembles, the 33 concerts also included performances by Bohdan Warchal’s Slovak Chamber Orchestra, Schola Gregoriana Pragensis with Marek Eben and Jiří Bárta, Societas Incognitorum, the English ensemble Florilegium with Henry Villca, Ensemble Inégal, Flautando Köln, and Musica Florea. The final concert featured Verdi’s Quattro pezzi sacri and Janáček’s Glagolitic Mass (JFO, ČFSB and soloists Eva Dřízgová-Jirušová, Erika Šporerová, Petr Levíček, Martin Gurbaľ, and organist Petr Čech). A programme catalogue was published and has been produced every year since.
2008
The fifth edition featured Collegium 1704, including soloists Hana Blažíková, Markéta Cukrová, and Tomáš Král, among others, that performed four concerts with two different programmes, which were recorded by Czech Television. The opening concert featured the locally based JFO under the baton of the excellent conductor Stanislav Macura, with Beethoven’’s Missa Solemnis (followed by the Slovak Philharmonic Choir Bratislava, soloists Margaret Chalker, Jana Sýkorová, Lesław Świdziński, and Peter Mikuláš). A total of 33 concerts were performed, with the Pavel Haas Quartet, Collegium Marianum with Luigi de Filippi, Petr Wagner and Jacques Ogg, Philharmonia Octet Prague and Ostravská Banda. The Czech Philharmonic Choir Brno with conductor Petr Fiala presented an a capella programme from the works of Petr Fiala and Leoš Janáček. In that year it also became the Festival’s choir in residence and since has been an integral part of every SHF. The concert of Collegium 1704 was recorded on the Festival’s DVD featuring Bach, Pergolesi, and Zelenka. The Festival was concluded in grand fashion with Brahms’ German Requiem (JFO, ČFSB, soloists Eva Dřízgová-Jirušová and Martin Gurbaľ).
2009
To broaden the offering of traditional concerts of sacred music, the sixth annual SHF featured a Jazz Mass by Jaromír Hnilička, who played a trumpet solo together with saxophonist Ruda Březina accompanied by the now extremely popular B Side Band (in cooperation with the Moravian Music Festival 2009). The edition offered 36 concerts, including the first appearance of soprano Simona Šaturová, who has graced almost every SHF since. Haydn’s oratorio Creation conducted by Jakub Hrůša, Handel’s oratorio Resurrection performed by Collegium 1704 (soloists Martina Janková, Kateřina Kněžíková, Mariana Rewerski, Jaroslav Březina, and Lisandro Abadie), which was recorded on the festival DVD, and the concert of the Amphion wind octet can be considered highlights of the 2009 edition. The Janáček Chamber Orchestra, Camerata Janáček, Musica Florea, Brass 6, Bennewitz Quartet, etc. also performed. Thanks to PKF – Prague Philharmonia, the Czech Philharmonic Choir Brno and a trio of English soloists (Mary Nelson, Mark Le Brocq, and Mathew Brook), festival-goers had a chance to experience Haydn’s Creation. The final concert was given by the Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava (Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 2 in G minor, Op. 52 “Lobgesang”).
2010
At the seventh annual SHF there were 36 concerts, and the first performance (Mahler’s Symphony No.2) was by the young conductor Tomáš Netopil, who soon started the rapid ascent of his artistic career. The Festival was opened with a performance of Dvořák’s Saint Ludmila, and unusual projects included concerts by the Slovak trio Pacora with the inspiring violinist Stan Palúch, and the Ipatievsky Monastery Male Choir from Moscow, which completely sold out the church in Ostrava-Vítkovice. After this concert SHF introduced a system of numbered seats in Ostrava churches, similar to cinemas. The Festival featured JFO, Brno Philharmonic, Prague Symphony Orchestra FOK, PKF – Prague Philharmonia, Collegium 1704, and Ensemble Tourbillon, among others. The performance of Caldaro’s Maddalena ai piedi di Cristo by Collegium Marianum starring Hana Blažíková, was recorded on the Festival’s DVD.
2011
The monumental Britten’s War Requiem performed by the Czech Philharmonic under the baton of Tomáš Netopil was a unique opening for the eighth edition. For the first time, mezzo-soprano Magdalena Kožená accompanied by Collegium 1704 made an appearance at SHF (and did so again in 2018). The Festival also featured an array of Baroque music legends, including violinist John Holloway, harpsichordist Lars Ulrik Mortensen, cellist Rainer Zipperling, and flautist Peter Holtslag. A total of 34 concerts were performed, when soloist Simona Šaturová was accompanied by the South Bohemian Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra České Budějovice, PKF – Prague Philharmonia, Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra Olomouc, Ensemble Phoenix Munich, Polish Radio Choir Krakow, Pavel Haas Quartet and Tiburtina Ensemble. The grand finale was delivered by JFO and Serbian soprano Katarina Jovanović (Suk, Schönberg, Messiaen).
2012
Martina Janková, an exceptional soprano and native of the local town of Orlová, opened the ninth annual SHF together with Collegium 1704 in the Cathedral of the Divine Saviour with a Bach project. This concert was filmed by Czech Television, and later was followed by a live recording on CD from Supraphon records. To name a few highlights of this edition, which consisted of 29 concerts, the Ostrava audience could enjoy a violin recital by Josef Špaček, performances by the Norwegian ensemble Currentes, and flute players Jan Ostrý and Philipp Bernold, who were accompanied for the first time by the newly established SHF Festival Orchestra under the direction of Vojtěch Spurný. Other performers included Ensemble Inégal, Collegium Marianum, the Talich and Škampa Quartets, Musica Florea, Musica Bohemica, Cappella Mariana, and PKF – Prague Philharmonia. The final concert was dedicated to Dvořák’s oratorio The Spectre’s Bride.
SHF – RENOWNED FESTIVAL (2013–PRESENT)
2013
The 10th anniversary SHF was extraordinary in many ways. The Festival’s date shifted a month earlier, mainly due to uncomfortable temperature in churches, thus setting the final concert date on Saint Wenceslas Day (28 September). In that year, the Festival organised 35 concerts, and its dramaturgy was enriched by crossover projects by the legendary Roby Lakatos Ensemble and the Musica Globus project, which also engaged the Slovak baroque ensemble Solamente Naturali and Jan Rokyta playing a dulcimer and various recorders. That year also witnessed the first appearance of the talented young violinist Esther Yoo in Ostrava, who has become a sought-after soloist and went on to win the prestigious BBC New Generation Artists award. The phenomenal Israeli cellist Gavriel Lipkind with violinist Anna Lipkind were first-time performers at the Festival.
2014
The Ostrava-based national bard Jaromír Nohavica put together a special programme for the 11th SHF and performed at the Evangelical Church of Christ in the centre of Ostrava. Collegium Marianum with its leader and conductor Jana Semerádová together with the ensemble Buchty a loutky performed Cavalli’s Baroque opera Calisto, which by the way had its closing night at the 2019 SHF. The SHF director Igor Františák performed as clarinettist with the Zemlinsky Quartet, playing clarinet quintets by Mozart and Brahms. The two concerts were recorded on the live CD Mozart – Brahms Clarinet Quintets, for which they jointly received the prestigious award of the Tip of the Harmonie magazine. The festival began with Dvořák’s Requiem (JFO) and a total of 30 concerts were held, including performances by French artists Philippe Portejoie, Pascal Vigneron, and Philippe Bernold, Spain’s La Grande Chapelle, the Dresden Chamber Choir, and the Wrocław Baroque Orchestra. The Festival closed with Rejch’s Requiem and Dvořák’s Te Deum.
2015
The 12th edition of SHF began with a succession of performances presenting major sacred works by French composers, with the final concert featuring Berlioz’s monumental oratorio The Damnation of Faust, leaving a significant impression on audience, which lasts to this day. In addition to concerts by countertenor Damien Guillon who was accompanied by the Collegium Marianum, Spanish mezzo-soprano Marta Infante, and the second performance of Bach’s Mass in B minor by Václav Luks and his Collegium 1704, the Festival also presented a unique project – the 1928 silent film The Passion of Joan of Arc with music by Bronius Kutavicius performed by the Berg Orchestra. There was a total of 32 concerts, including the unique Music/Poetry reading/Dance project, the Permoník Concert Choir as well as the Kühn Children’s Choir, Baborák Ensemble, Lotz Trio, and Flanders Recorder Quartet, among others.
2016
The 13th edition of the Festival began with the Baroque orchestra Ensemble Inégal with Adam Viktora as a leader performing the first part of Zelenka’s Vespers, which was systematically performed over the years to come (in the same church in the Ostrava Svinov district). The performers included Capella Cracoviensis, Haydn Ensemble, Gavriel Lipkind, the Australian Island Quartet, Paweł Gusnar and Bartosz Jakubczak, and the Pražák Quartet. Other starring performers included Moravian-Silesian natives Martina Janková and Ivo Kahánek (programme Dvořák, Janáček, Martinů). The novelty of this year’s edition, which consisted of 35 concerts, was a change in the graphics and size of the Festival bulletin. The Festival started to use the acronym SHF, and its PR was significantly changed.
2017
In its 14th year, the Festival began to expand with an accompanying programme – discussions with artists, film screenings with musical themes, musicology insights and workshops for children. SHF implemented 35 concerts, and from this time SHF adopted the Festival motto “A Concert in a Church is Truly an Experience”. A big attraction for visitors that year was the crossover project of Dan Bárta with the Robert Balzar Trio and the Brno Philharmonic Orchestra, which completely sold out the Evangelical Church of Christ in the historical centre of Ostrava. With the opening concert (Brahms’s German Requiem) and the concert in Český Těšín, with close cooperation of the Silesian Evangelical Church, the Festival joined the celebrations of the 500th anniversary of Luther’s reformation. The Ostrava Youth Orchestra (Rossini’s Stabat Mater), composed of students from the Faculty of Fine Arts and Music, University of Ostrava and the Janáček Conservatory Ostrava, under the baton of Paolo Gatto, made its premiere that year. Collegium 1704 interpreted Mozart’s Requiem, and SHF was also visited by flautist Barthold Kuijken and violinist Martyna Pastuszka with her {oh!} Orkiestra Historyczna. The final concert was a performance of Berlioz’s monumental oratorio The Childhood of Jesus, conducted by French Philipp Bernold.
2018
The 15th anniversary of SHF was inspired by the concept of “100 concerts among 100 stars and under the protection of angel wings”. Throughout the year, SHF together its side project Musical Journeys organised a total of 100 concerts symbolically marking the 100th anniversary of the founding of the sovereign Czechoslovakian state. A record-breaking 39 concerts were held during the September Festival, with highlights including a concert by Mahan Esfahani with the German ensemble La Folia Barockorchester, a solo violin recital by Isabelle Faust, the joint Janáček-Chopin project of soprano Martina Janková with pianist Ivo Kahánek, and Magdalena Kožená’s memorable concert with Collegium 1704 entitled The Garden of Baroque Lamentations (the first concert of their tour, which culminated in the recording of the CD Il giardino dei sospiri). A unique Festival highlight was the ballet performance in a church – a project of the Prague Chamber Ballet together with the Zemlinsky Quartet and Igor Františák, as well as the project of the organ player Katta. The Festival bulletin was exceptionally bilingual (English-Czech), and so was the generous brochure “Musical Journeys” (175 pages).
2019
The 16th annual SHF carried the moniker “Festival with Wings: 30 Years since the Velvet Revolution – 30 Years of Freedom”. Two of 32 concerts (2 concertos of the Pavel Haas Quartet were not performed, so in fact 30 concerts) were under the auspices of prominent figures – the Bishop of the Silesian Evangelical Church Tomáš Tyrlík with the “Concert of Gratitude for Freedom” (Collegium 1704 Vocale) and the Rector of the University of Ostrava Jan Lata with the final concert “Saint Wenceslas” (Suk, Kabeláč, Dvořák). That year, SHF became the only festival to systematically perform Zelenka’s complete Vespers in 2016–2019 thanks to Enseble Inégal. SHF’s prestige has also increased significantly due to the completion of staging of Antonín Dvořák’s complete sacred works. SHF presented concerts by local artists – pianist Martin Kasík, soprano Kateřina Kněžíková and Veronika Holbová, and the Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava. It also brought the phenomenal Italian countertenor Filippo Minecia and ČFSB, which performed in four separate concerts. The Festival hosted some world’s leading chamber ensembles such as the Z.E.N. Trio, the Peter Holtslag Trio, and the In Medias Brass ensemble. Particularly interesting projects were presented by the Paľa brothers with Jarmila Balážová and the Opera Diversa Ensemble (Pärt, Emmert) and Ondřej Ruml with the Matej Benko Quintet and the South Bohemian Philharmonic Orchestra České Budějovice (Ježek, Voskovec, Werich). The Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra (Moniuszko 200 Project) and the Katowice Camerata Silesia choir were also guests of the Festival. Several concerts (as in the past) were recorded by Czech Radio Ostrava and NOE Television. A novelty of this year was the creation of a close network of friendly festival cafés, coffee roasters and pubs, and the strengthening of the SHF Friends Club. That year also gave a birth to the most comprehensive Festival catalogue with invitations and expert texts of performers on concerts, interviews with artists, Ivan Korč photo gallery, etc. (Eva Mikulášková – Igor Františák – Graphic House).
2020
The 17th edition was held “live” despite very difficult conditions due to the pandemic situation. The prepared dramaturgy with an international dimension of had to be replaced by a purely Czech version, and a total of 29 concerts were organised. Moreover, as part of the new cooperation among three music festivals (SHF, Concentus Moraviae, and IMF Lípa Musica), SHF decided under the motto “Connected by Music” to fully support Czech artists such as Collegium 1704, Collegium Marianum Czech Philharmonic Choir Brno, Pavel Haas Quartet, Bennewitz and Zemlinsky Quartet, singers Simona Šaturová, Martina Janková, Hana Blažíková and Markéta Cukrová, and instrumentalists Mahan Esfahani, Jiří Vodička, and Jan Ostrý. The diverse programme of the entire Festival, framed by the 250th anniversary of Ludwig van Beethoven’s birth, in addition to classical music concerts offered alternative projects, film screenings, discussions with artists, and newly also master classes.
2021
The 18th annual SHF overcame the COVID-19 pandemic, implementing 31 concerts, two thirds of which were international projects. Audiences could enjoy performances of soloists and ensembles from Poland, Slovakia, Serbia, Lithuania, Ukraine, Estonia, Russia, Belgium, Germany, Austria, Italy, France, and Spain. An exclusive guest list included the National Orchestra of the Polish Radio – NOSPR, Federico Colli, Collegium Musicale, La Grande Chapelle, Terra Nova Collective, Orpheus, and Filippo Mineccia. The churches also rang with a concert version of Ballad for a Bandit and the big band electronica of the Cotatcha Orchestra. Furthermore, SHF performed Dvořák’s oratorio Saint Ludmila on the day marking 1,100 years after the saint’s murder, thus connecting to activities organised across the country. For the first time, the Festival hosted Karin Lednická, author of the bestselling novel Šikmý kostel (English: The Leaning Church) and a discussion with the author with her after the concert in this venue. Following the Festival’s end, the album Beethoven: Septet / Schubert: Octet was released (recorded from the concert The Magnificent Chamber Play, 2020), which was awarded a Harmony Journal Tip.
2022
As part of the planned 33 concerts, the 19th edition widened its portfolio also offering jazz in addition to sacred and early music. The Festival was ceremonially opened on 2 September at the Cathedral of the Divine Saviour in the Ostrava centre with Mozart’s Great Mass in C minor and the “Linz Symphony” performed by the PKF – Prague Philharmonia under the baton of conductor Václav Luks together with the Czech Philharmonic Choir Brno and well-respected soloists such as Simona Šaturová, Martina Janková, and others. However, the 19th SHF was crowned by the Opera Gala of the worldwide star, mezzo-soprano Elīna Garanča with the Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava – it took place not in a huge stadium, as one might expect, but in the Evangelical Church of Christ in the very heart of Ostrava. The September music marathon also featured the prestigious festival ensembles in residence Collegium 1704 (Handel’s Israel in Egypt), Collegium Marianum (with the excellent soprano Roberta Mameli) and the Czech Philharmonic Choir Brno, as well as the Wroclaw Philharmonic, Hipocondria Ensemble with soprano Hana Blažíková, Musica Florea with soloist Radek Baborák, and the Lotz Trio playing unique basset horns, Hungarian brass ensemble In Medias Brass, violin virtuoso Jiří Vodička with the Barocco sempre giovane ensemble (currently nominated for the regional Jantar Prize), the Bennewitz and Zemlinsky Quartet (Mendelssohn’s Octet in E flat major), performer and organist Katta, mezzo-soprano Markéta Cukrová, the best Czech bass-baritone Adam Plachetka, and also jazzmen Adam Bałdych Quintet and Vertigo. The final “St. Wenceslas” concert was dedicated to the dramatic cantata The Spectre’s Bride by Antonín Dvořák. To top it off, under the baton of Tomáš Brauner, the Hradec Králové Philharmonic Orchestra, the Czech Philharmonic Choir Brno and the soloist trio Pavla Vykopalová, Richard Samek and Svatopluk Sem performed.
2023
Ballet in the church, Baroque opera with puppets, world-renowned performers, and concerts in atmospheric churches were offered by the 20th St. Wenceslas Music Festival held 5–28 September 2023. Dmitrij Sitkovetsky and Jan Bartoš, Christophe Coin, Jiří Vodička and Jan Špaček, Radek Baborák, Accademia Ottoboni, Pavel Haas Quartet, Terra Nova Collective, Collegium 1704, as well as Dan Bárta and the Philharmonic Orchestra performed in this edition.
The jubilee SHF was dubbed “the best of SHF” and showcased unique projects and personalities of sacred, chamber, and early music across the Festival’s history. “For the first time, opened the lineup of all 23 concerts already in March. I tried to take a retrospective look back and acknowledge not only the most popular, but for me personally, the most interesting festival moments. I hope that I have succeeded, and that we’ll bring true gems that will leave a strong impression on the audience. And since I have had a great respect for our resident ensembles—Collegium 1704, Collegium Marianum, and the Czech Philharmonic Choir of Brno led by Petr Fiala—will certainly not be missing. It is this unique personality of musical culture who will celebrate his 80th birthday – as an acknowledgment and appreciation of his work, thanks to which the choir has become world popular indeed, the final Festival concert will be dedicated to him, featuring his Stabat Mater and Janáček’s Glagolitic Mass,” says SHF director and dramaturge Prof. Igor Františák about the diverse festival programme.
ACCOMPANYING PROGRAMME
Exhibitions of photographs and paintings
Since 2007, SHF has periodically organised exhibitions of Ivan Korč’s photographs from previous SHF editions– whether in the foyer of the Antonín Dvořák Theatre, at Ostrava City Hall, or in the Cathedral of the Divine Saviour. In 2008 there was also an exhibition of Karel Haruda’s paintings on a musical theme. In 2022, the photographs of Ivan Korč from SHF were exhibited by the VENKU Gallery (English: OUTSIDE Gallery) on Masaryk Square in the centre of Ostrava and in the Lower Vítkovice area.
Discussions with artists
Festival discussions are always held in the partner Knihcentrum bookshop in the centre of Ostrava during SHF, moderated by Sandra Procházková and Kateřina Huberová. Guests in 2017 were Kateřina Kněžíková, Tomáš Král, Paolo Gatto, Veronika Holbová, and Igor Františák. In 2018 guests included Martina Janková (Martin Kumžák, Dasha [not implemented]), and in 2019 it was Veronika Holbová, Eva Dřízgová-Jirušová, and Jakub Klecker, as well as Robert Kružík and Igor Františák. In 2020, hosts invited the lecturers of master classes Martina Janková, Jiří Vodička, and conductor Ondřej Vrabec. Towards the Festival end a discussion Classical Music in Ostrava in the (Post)Coronavirus Times was held with the directors of the three main cultural Ostrava institutions that systematically cooperate with each other – Igor Františák, Jiří Nekvasil (National Moravian-Silesian Theatre) and Jan Žemla (Janáček Philharmonic Orchestra in Ostrava). In 2021, a discussion took place between long-standing partners – the St. Wenceslas Music Festival and the Janáček Philharmonic Orchestra in Ostrava. Both institutions were represented by conductor Petr Popelka for JFO and Igor Františák for SHF. The discussion on Ballad for a Bandit with composer Miloš Štědroň, Otakar Svoboda and Igor Františák was cancelled due to illness. For the first time, one of the discussions was held in a location other than the Knihcentrum bookshop, this time in the Leaning Church in the town of Karviná with the bestselling author of the same name novel, Karin Lednická. There were no SHF discussions in 2022.
Art and documentary films with musicology insights – Minikino Cinema
In 2017 and 2018, films about music were screened during the Festival with musicology insights by Martin Čurda, who also selected the films. In 2017, spectators could enjoy Farinelli: Il Castrato (1994) and Mahler (1974) at the Ostrava Minikino, and in 2018 the films Bohuslav Martinů: What People Live By (2018), Humoresque (1946) and The Last Quartet (2012). In 2019, the films were selected by Stanislava Hrušková and screened as a Festival preview (June): Maria by Callas (2017) – Macbeth (2019) – As in Heaven (2004). In 2020, Mahan Esfahani’s harpsichord recital was followed by a film about his mentor Zuzana Růžičková: Zuzana: Music Is Life (2017). There were no festival film screenings in 2022.
Music-educational workshops for children
The St. Wenceslas Music Festival organised workshops for the first time in 2017. They were held in the oldest church in Ostrava – St. Wenceslas Church. The workshop was named after the new SHF motto A Concert in a Church is Truly an Experience and its creator was musicologist and lecturer Nikola Illeová. The children learned to recognize musical instruments in the sacred space, glued stained glass windows, listened to music, and also had a conversation with an organist who explained the organ construction and instrument-play. In 2018, in honour of the anniversary of the Hukvaldy native Leoš Janáček (the year-long project Janáček Ostrava 2018), workshops were organised under the motto Playing with Cunning Little Vixen. The workshop was once again put together under the guidance of lecturer Illeová with an assistance of Eva Mikulášková and the implementation took place during the Festival in September in the Ostrava Museum and mostly in primary schools. Participating children were given a tour through the operatic and animal world both musically and artistically. Lecturers used inter alia Orff instruments and boomwhackers. The 2019 workshop was created by musicologist and dramaturge Eva Mikulášková and was previewed in June as a festival preview. The Music in the Animal – Animal in the Music workshop brought the children closer to the world of classical music in a natural way through musical demonstrations and musical, musical-dramatic, and artistic activities based on artistic inspirations from the animal kingdom. The goal was to introduce pupils of primary and primary art schools throughout the Moravian-Silesian region to musical instruments, compositional styles, musical forms and types, the essence of artistic professions, and also to artistic functions and values, including the possibility of portraying one’s own inspirations based on perceptions of sound, image, action or the meaning of words themselves. During the workshop, the audience was introduced in an educational and playful form to musical compositions of the oldest styles (Renaissance, Baroque) to the compositions of the great Romantics, as well as to the various forms and types of grasping their inspiration through animals. Children were introduced to exceptional onomatopoeic works ranging from the simplest polyphony to the most complicated and complex forms – opera and/or ballet. The workshop was assisted by theatre researcher and head of the Ostrava Theatre Archive project Stanislava Hrušková. In coming years, it is expected that the future Music in the Animal – Animal in the Music workshops will be continued, as well as a refinement of the 2017/2019 concept, where workshops are be held in a church accompanied by live music (lecturers, musicians).
Master classes
A novelty of the 17th SHF were masterclasses with world-renowned performers – soprano Martina Janková and concertmaster of the Czech Philharmonic, violinist Jiří Vodička. They took place at the Faculty of Fine Arts and Music, University of Ostrava and culminated in a joint concert “I Am Rolling Music 2020” with the Ostrava Youth Orchestra under the baton of Ondřej Vrabec.
Saint Wenceslas Music Festival
The society of Saint Wenceslas Music Festival (abbreviated as SHF) organises a month-long music festival which brings artistically valuable and unique musical performances with a unified dramaturgical and ideological style to the widest possible number of spectators living in the Moravian-Silesian region, with direct involvement of local towns and villages. Key goals of SHF are:
- through SHF contribute to the enrichment and innovation of current cultural environment in all of Moravian-Silesian region, which includes places with currently less developed cultural life, that nevertheless have an active interest in reviving their musical tradition;
- present Czech music, both historical and contemporary, in connection with crucial moments of Czech history (the festival is occurring between two major Czech holidays – September 28, the Day of Czech Statehood, and October 28, the Day of the Establishing of Independent Czech State, it is on these days that the opening and closing concerts of the festival take place);
- allow the widest possible group of recipients, both from majority and minority groups, to experience musical events;
- offer to the listeners exceptionally interesting and valuable dramaturgical projects and unusual combinations: music – poetry – dance – theatre;
- bring musical and cultural life to attractive and suitable church locations – SHF takes place in churches and prayer-rooms belonging to Roman Catholic, Evangelical and Hussite churches;
- popularise among the general public many attractive and especially artistically valuable forms of authentic musical performance;
- support the young and up-and-coming generation of Czech performance in their artistic careers;
- allow for a broad and quality presentation of Czech music with focus on anniversaries of significant Czech composers and artists;
- present excellent foreign performers and through them broadcast positive experiences with Czech music and Czech cultural experiences abroad (October as the “Month of Czech and Slovak cultural cooperation”);
- provide the missing element of liturgical art and music to the region (a significant part of the dramaturgy of every future year of the SHF Music Festival will be dedicated to Czech music), whilst keeping to a widely ecumenical focus of the SHF;
