Songs of Romantic Masters

The mezzo-soprano Jana Hrochová (Wallingerová), née Štefáčková, gained her first singing experience in a children’s choir in the Moravian town of Šumperk. She studied at the Prague Conservatory with Jarmila Krásová from 1993 to 1999. In 2001, she began studying privately with the soprano Natalia Romanová. In 1998, she came in second at the Czech Conservatories Singing Contest. Her first engagements took place at the Opera Mozart in Prague between 1997 and 2000, extending her activities to ancient music (with Ars Cameralis) and folk music (with the Muzika Jara ensemble). In 2000, Mrs Hrochová was invited to join the opera company of the National Theatre in Brno, Czech Republic. The repertoire she sang in Brno includes Carmen (Carmen), Laura (La Gioconda), Kate (The Devil and Kate), Rosina (Il barbiere di Siviglia), Suzuki (Madame Butterfly), The Fox (The Cunning Little Vixen), Varvara (Katja Kabanova), Fenena (Nabucco), Hänsel (Hänsel and Gretel), Nicklausse (The Tales of Hoffmann) and others. Guest performances have taken the young mezzo to a number of opera houses, such as the Prague National Theatre, Prague State Opera, Plzeň, Ústí nad Labem, Liberec, Ostrava, Olomouc (Czech Republic), State Theatre Košice (Slovakia) and Theatre Freiburg (Germany). Mrs Hrochová’s concert activities are an essential part of her repertoire and have brought her together with some leading Czech and foreign orchestras, such as the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, Czech Philharmonic, Prague Symphony Orchestra FOK, Prague Radio Symphonic Orchestra, Brno Philharmonic Orchestra, Prague Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra, Janáček Philharmonic Orchestra, Bohuslav Martinů Philharmonic Orchestra and others. She works with conductors such as Jiří Bělohlávek, Serge Baudo, Gerd Albrecht, Manfred Honeck, Ondrej Lenárd, Petr Altrichter, Jakub Hrůša, Leoš Svárovský, Tomáš Hanus, Andrej Borejko, Dennis Russell Davies and others. Mrs Hrochová  often makes guest appearances at opera houses and concert stages outside the Czech Republic (Great Britain, Japan, China, Spain, Mexico, Greece, Netherlands, Austria, Germany and Italy). In 2011, she sang the alto solo in Dvorak’s Requiem mass at a state funeral of Vaclav Havel. The Brno National Theatre awarded her with the DIVA 2005, 2008 and 2010 Award. In 2012, she was nominated for the Thalia award for her role as Dulcinée in Massenet’s Don Quichotte in a production of the F. X. Šalda Theatre in Liberec. In 2013, she was nominated for the Thalia award for her role as Hermia in Britten’s Midsummer Night’s Dream in a production of The Brno National Theatre. In 2011 and 2018 she recorded songs by Bohuslav Martinů for Naxos Records. In 2014, she was invited to perform the role of Carmen in the Theatre Freiburg, Germany. In 2016, she made her BBC Proms debut at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

www.janahrochova.cz/

Robin Červinek was born in Kyjov, where he also started singing at the Basic Arts School. He attended private lessons with David Szendiuch, a soloist of the National Theatre in Olomouc. In 2021, he completed his master’s degree at the Janáček Academy of Performing Arts in Brno in Zdeněk Šmukař’s class. He has also been a student at the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst in Vienna since 2020, where he studies with Prof. Margit Klaushofer. During his studies, he has participated in several international performance courses with international artists and teachers such as Adam Plachetka, Kateřina Kněžíková, Thomas Steinhöfel, Singfried Goritz, Irena Sylya and Amelia Felle.

He has performed the following roles in the chamber opera at the Orlí Theatre in Brno: The King in Orff’s opera Die Kluge, The Poet in the contemporary opera Unknown by Daniel Šimek, The Count in Il Matrimonio Segreto by Domenico Cimarosa and The Count in Mozart’s opera The Marriage of Figaro. At the Schönbrunn Palace Theatre in Vienna he performed the role of Harlequin in Strauss’s Ariadne auf Naxos.

He has also taken part in several international competitions. In 2018 he was the overall winner of the Prague Singer competition. He won 2nd prize at the Antonín Dvořák International Singing Competition in Karlovy Vary, where he also won numerous special prizes, such as the Jan Lucemburský Prize, the Beno Blachut Prize, the Vilém Zítek Prize and the Milan Bürger Prize. His other competition successes include 2nd place at the Dusek Performance Competition. In May 2019, he won 2nd prize at the Iuventus Canti competition. In 2021, he won 2nd prize at the Iuventus Canti competition and was a laureate of the Mikulas Schneider-Trnavsky International Competition. In November 2021 he was the winner of the Bohuslav Martinů Foundation Competition, where he also won three special prizes. Since the 2021/2022 season he has been a member of the opera studio of the Slovak National Theatre in Bratislava. He also makes guest appearances at the National Theatre in Brno and the National Theatre in Ostrava.

Jan Řezníček first studied violin at both the Conservatory and the Janáček Academy of Performing Arts and later extended his studies at the latter institution to include the viola. Řezníček worked briefly as a violinist in the Brno State Philharmonic Orchestra and as a second violinist and violist in the Moravian Quartet before returning to the Brno State Philharmonic to take up the position of violist. Řezníček has, however, also collaborated with other major ensembles from home and abroad, such as the Bohuslav Martinů Philharmonic; the Brno Philharmonic; the Moravian Chamber Orchestra; the Talich Chamber Orchestra and the Toronto Sinfonietta; as well as with conductors of both illustrious and less illustrious names, including other fellow instrumentalists. Řezníček regularly performs with pianists Jiřina Kolmanová and Eduard Spáčil, either with them or with other colleagues, to regularly premiere selected works by Czech or foreign contemporary composers. Currently, Řezníček is mainly associated with the Janáček Quartet, with whom he performs on concert stages and on international tours, but he also finds time for his own solo viola recitals in front of audiences at home and abroad. Řezníček continues to work with the latter group, has recorded countless albums and has travelled to several countries.

In addition to his artistic activities, Jan Řezníček also teaches at both the Brno Conservatory and the Janáček Academy of Performing Arts, under whose wing he served as professor of chamber music. In addition to his educational activities, Řezníček also teaches new young candidates for musical education at instrumental courses in Turnov or Nové Město na Moravě, or sits on juries of competitions at conservatories and primary art schools. For years Jan Řezníček has been associated mainly with performing with the Janáček Quartet or with his own solo recitals.

Bohumír Stehlík is one of the foremost Czech pianists of the younger generation. He has distinguished himself both as a soloist and chamber music player, having developed a sensitive instrumental skill and great musical expressive power.

Bohumír’s music education started at an early age at the Music Gymnasium in Prague under Irina Kondratěnko and later on at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague under František Malý. From 2011 to 2016 he studied under well-know Swedish pianist Mats Widlund at Edsberg Music Institute, part of the Royal Academy in Stockholm and one of the most prestigious music academies of Northern Europe. He has been awarded various prizes in many international solo competitions (e.g. Ljunggrenska tävlingen – 1st prize, Stockholm International Music Competition – 2nd price, Virtuosi per Musica di Pianoforte – 1st prize, Concertino Praga – 1st prize etc.). Bohumir also obtained the Yamaha Scholarship Award and the prestigious KMA Swedish National Scholarship for both solo piano, chamber music and accompaniment (maximal sum reached in 2015). A member of Duo du Rêve, Bohumír and flautist Jana Jarkovská won prizes in various competitions of music ensembles (Chieri International Music Competition “Citta di Chieri” – 1st prize, Val Tidone International Chamber Music Competition – 1st prize, Salieri-Zinneti Chamber Music Competition – 3rd prize, winner of ProMusicis International Award in France, winner of ISA Challenge and Open Awards in Austria etc.). He also recorded several CDs with Jana Jarkovska. Outside Duo du Rêve, he collaborates with violinist Markéta Janoušková and is also a member of D’Accord chamber music ensemble.

In addition to his concert activities, he collaborates with Czech Radio. Bohumír also works in productions for the Povaleč Music Festival (CZ) and the „D’Accord, Das Klassikfestival“ in (D), where he also leads the masterclass. He worked as a teacher at the Ingesund Academy of Music at Karlstad University in Sweden and since October 2016 has also been teaching at the Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts in Brno. Bohumír works as a regenschori in the Church of the Name of the Virgin Mary in Křtiny (CZ).

www.bohumirstehlik.com