The past, present and future of the Prague Symphony Orchestra. Orchestra director Daniel Sobotka on the threshold of the 90th season as a guest of Music in the Millennium

Symphony Orchestra of the Capital City of Prague FOK was created in the autumn of 1934, so this year it will celebrate 90th anniversary. The birthday season will begin September 18 and 19 in Smetana Hall of the Municipal House opening concert led by the chief conductor Tomas Braunerwho chose a monumental work for this festive occasion Gustav Mahler: Symphony No. 8 in E flat major nicknamed “A symphony of thousands“.

It will also remind you of the anniversary Birthday concert at Radiopalácwhere the first ever public concert of the FOK was held in 1934. His replica will be a performance October 23 and 24whose guests will be a violinist Ivan Married and cellist Jiří Bárta. He will take care of the accompanying word Ondřej Havelka.

The guest soloists will arrive during the 2024/2025 season, among others Truls Mørk, Lukáš Vondráček, Sharon Kam, Daniel Lozakovich, Marek Kozak or Milan Paľafrom guest conductors Tomas Hanus, Sascha Goetzel, Alena Hron, Claus Peter Flor whose Petr Altrichter. There will also be popular chamber concert cycles, concerts intended for children’s audiences, foreign tours and other usual parts of the Prague Symphony Orchestra season.

What is the latest knowledge about the origin of the acronym FOK? Since when has the orchestra been associated with the capital Prague? And what will the move to the new building of the Vltava Philharmonic mean for the Prague Symphony?

Not only that, the director of the Symphony Orchestra, Hl. City of Prague FOK Daniel Sobotka in the program premiered in Tuesday, May 7 from 7 p.m and reruns in Friday 10.5. from 10 p.m and Saturday 11.5. from 11.00.

Photo: Daniel Sobotka (©FOK archive)