Jiri Belohlavek

The renowned Czech maestro Jiří Bĕlohlávek took up the position of Chief Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra in July 2006. Founder and Music Director Laureate of the Prague Philharmonia, Maestro Bĕlohlávek studied at the Prague Conservatoire and Arts Academy. He appears regularly with major orchestras including the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Vienna Symphony, Philharmonia, London Philharmonic and NHK Symphony. In North America, he conducts the symphony orchestras of San Francisco, Toronto, Washington DC, St Louis, Montreal, and Minnesota. In his homeland, Jiří Bĕlohlávek has frequently performed with the Czech Philharmonic, Prague Symphony, and the Prague Philharmonia, and he has recently been appointed Chairman of the Prague Spring Festival.

Jiří Bĕlohlávek has been Chief Conductor of the Prague Symphony (1977-89) and Music Director of the Czech Philharmonic (1990-1992), with whom he has recorded extensively for Chandos Records. He founded the Prague Philharmonia in 1994, and has recorded and toured extensively with this ensemble, including a televised appearance at the BBC Proms in July 2004. He was appointed Principal Guest Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra in September 1995, immediately following his début with the orchestra conducting The Epic of Gilgamesh by Martinu.

Highlights of the 2006/07 season included performances of Jenufa with the Metropolitan Opera and the Washington National Opera, as well as engagements with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, National Symphony, Toronto Symphony, Japan Philharmonic, and the Orchestra Svizzera Italiana.

In the 2007/08 season, Maestro Bĕlohlávek conducts the Philadelphia Orchestra, St Louis Symphony, Detroit Symphony, Dallas Symphony as well as the Berlin Philharmonic, Amsterdam Concertgebouw and Orchestre de Paris. He also leads the Royal Opera House Orchestra in a production of Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin.