Leoš Svárovský

Leoš Svárovský (born 17 May 1961 in Jablonec nad Nisou) is a Czech conductor.

Svarovsky first studied flute at the Prague Conservatory, and by 1981 achieved a reputation as an eminent soloist. Between 1981 and 1987 he continued his studies at the department of conducting of the Academy of Music and Dramatic Art with Professor Václav Neumann. He graduated with decoration and was awarded the Prize of AMU Rector.

He started his profession as conductor in 1985 as the assistant of Zdeněk Košler, then Director of the Opera at the Prague National Theatre. In 1991, Svárovský attended courses by Herbert von Karajan in Salzburg, working as an assistant to Sir George Solti and Claudio Abbado during Sommerspiele Salzburg. Since the beginning of his career as conductor, Svárovský has worked as chief-conductor for several Czech and Slovak orchestras – including Ostrava Janáček Philharmony (1991–1993), Brno State Philharmony (1991–1995), Žilina Slovak Chamber Orchestra (1995–2000) and Pardubice Chamber Philharmony (since 1997). In the 2001/2002 season, he acted as the main conductor of the Ballet at the Prague National Theatre.

Leoš Svárovský worked with many other Czech and Slovak orchestras, mainly with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra and the Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, as well as many foreign orchestras, including Bach Collegium Munich, Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra, Munich Radio Orchestra, Bonn Beethovenhalle Orchestra, Residentie Orkest den Haag, Luxemburg RTL Symphonic Orchestra, Ulster Orchestra, Peking Symphonic Orchestra, Wiener Kammerorchester, Mozarteum Orchester Salzburg and many others. He also appeared as a guest conductor in many European countries, in the USA, in Japan, and in Korea. He was a guest at many international music festivals and worked with exceptional soloists like Josef Suk, V. Hudeček, I. Ardašev, I. Oistrach, M. Fedotov, H. Hardenberger, D. Geringas, K. Ricciarelli, E. Urbanová, D. Pecková, M. Gauci, F. Patane, P. Dvorský, E. Indjic, etc.

In 1996 Svárovský staged Janáček’s opera Katya Kabanova and a year later Charles Gounod’s Faust and Marguerite at the Prague State Opera. He presented Dvořák’s Rusalka (Water Nymph) in Amsterdam in 2000 and Alexander Glazunov’s ballet Raymonda at the Prague National Theatre in 2001.

At the moment, Leoš Svárovský – apart from permanent cooperation with the Pardubice Chamber Philharmony – acts as the permanent conductor of the Prague Symphony Orchestra FOK (since 2000), appears as regular guest at the Brno State Philharmony and teaches at the department of conducting at the Faculty of Music of the Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.

External links

* [http://www.opera.cz/en/umelec/profil/leossvarovsky.html Biography]
* [http://www.musicologica.cz/slovnik/hesla.php?op=heslo&hid=1001750 Biography (in Czech)]