Prague Philharmonic Choir Coming to Harris Center, 11/10

Since its inception Harris Center for the Arts has prided itself on bringing some of the world's best talent to Folsom. The Prague Philharmonic Choir, led by principal conductor Lukáš Vasilek, is a professional choral ensemble of almost 70 members which has been performing and recording all over the world for 79 years. It collaborates with renowned orchestras and conductors of the international music scene, and is considered one of the most popular choirs in Europe.

Since 2011, the Prague Philharmonic Choir has been the choir in residence of the prestigious Opera Festival in Bregenz, where it has performed, over the years, with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, not only in Aida, André Chénier and The Magic Flute, but also in its own concerts, or at the world premieres of Passenger by Mieczys?aw Weinberg, Miss Fortune by Judith Weir, Solaris by German composer Detlev Glanert, and The Merchant of Venice by André Tchaikowsky. This last work received the prestigious International Opera Award 2014.

The Prague Philharmonic Choir performs on Monday, November 10, 2014 at 7:30 pm. Tickets are priced at $25-$39; Premium $49; $12 Students with ID. Tickets are available online at www.harriscenter.net or from the Harris Center Ticket Office at 916-608-6888 from 10 am to 6 pm Monday through Saturday, and two hours before show time. Parking is included in the price of the ticket. Harris Center is located on the west side of Folsom Lake College campus in Folsom, CA, facing East Bidwell Street.

The Prague Philharmonic Choir began performing in January 1935, under the leadership of its founder, Jan Kühn, as the Prague Radiojournal Choir, later the Czech Choir. Originally an amateur body, it gradually became professional and, in 1951, it was affiliated with the Czech Philharmonic, which it remained a part of until 1990. The choir is currently an independent ensemble. Principal conductors since the 1960s have included Josef Veselka, Lubomír Mátl, Pavel Kühn, Jaroslav Brych and Jan Rozehnal. Since 2007 the post of current principal conductor has been held by Lukáš Vasilek.

The Prague Philharmonic Choir regularly collaborates with leading Czech and international orchestras, including the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, Prague Symphony Orchestra, Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra, PKF - Prague Philharmonia, Berlin Philharmonic, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Israel Philharmonic, Staatskapelle Dresden, Staatskapelle Berlin, Mahler Chamber Orchestra and many others. During its long history, the Prague Philharmonic Choir has achieved exceptional musical quality, based on its cooperation with outstanding conductors such as Sir Charles Mackerass, Riccardo Muti, Pierre Boulez, Seiji Ozawa, Zubin Mehta, Kurt Masur, Sir Simon Rattle, Michael Tilson Thomas, Christoph Eschenbach, Christopher Hogwood, Ingo Metzmacher, Fabio Luisi, Manfred Honeck and Ji?í B?lohlávek. It also collaborates with the upcoming generation of conductors, including Czech conductors Jakub Hr?ša and Tomáš Netopil.

The Prague Philharmonic Choir has a wide repertoire that is focused primarily on a cappella, cantata and oratorio works from classicism to the present. Recently it has also been invited, in various chamber forms, to perform renaissance and baroque music. An important part of the choir's repertoire is opera, both in concert and incidental forms. In addition, the Prague Philharmonic Choir is considered an exemplary performer of Czech music (e.g. Dvo?ák, Janá?ek and Martin?) and music by Slavic composers (e.g. Rachmaninov and Shostakovich). It is in demand to perform this kind of music thanks largely to its distinctive colourful sound and the well-suited language skills of its singers.

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