Jakub Hrusa will become the chief conductor and musical director of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra in autumn 2028, succeeding Semyon Bychkov, who announced his departure last spring after completing his tenth season at the helm of the orchestra.
Hrusa’s mandate will be for five years, but both sides expect to continue their cooperation in the future, said David Marecek, the director-general of the Czech Philharmonic.
“The Czech Philharmonic is one of the most important orchestras in the world today,” said Hrusa. “It combines inimitable tradition and potential, which opens the way for artistic growth. Our first orchestra not only sets the tone of musical life in the Czech Republic in a unique way, but also presents itself with breathtaking success on the most prestigious stages around the world. I am delighted that the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra has decided to join its life forces with mine from 2028, and I appreciate it very much.”
Hrusa, 43, has been the orchestra’s principal guest conductor since 2018. He is currently the Principal Conductor of the Bamberger Symphony Orchestra, and will remain in this position until 2029. From this September, he will become musical director of the Royal Opera House in London. He has previously served as Principal Guest Conductor of the Orchestra of the National Academy of Santa Cecilia in Rome, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra. He was named Opus Klassik magazine’s Conductor of the Year in 2023, twice won the Gramophone Classical Music Awards in 2024, and is the recipient of several major awards and honorable mentions in Germany, the UK and the Czech Republic.
He is also a guest conductor at some of the world’s leading orchestras, including the Berlin, Vienna and Munich Philharmonics, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Zurich Tonhalle Orchestra, Dresden and Berlin Staatskapelle, Amsterdam Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Lucerne Festival Orchestra, Paris Orchestra and Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France. In the USA, he has performed with the New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, and Cleveland Orchestra.
Abroad, Hrusa is acclaimed for his interpretations of 18th-20th century repertoire, as well as his extraordinary performances of works by Czech composers from Bedrich Smetana to the present.
Hrusa first performed with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra in December 2004, and has since conducted the orchestra more than 90 times at concerts in Prague, and more than 30 times abroad. In recent seasons he has prepared a number of projects with the orchestra, including concert performances of Leos Janacek’s The Cunning Little Vixen and Smetana’s Libuse, which was performed at the Prague Spring and Smetana Litomysl festivals in 2024.
