Jiří Rožeň

Conductor

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“ […] this young man has already quite a bit of success on podium behind him [….]and even much more ahead of him.”
(Opera Plus)

Artistic Curator: Opera Nova, National Theatre Prague

Jiří Rožeň’s international presence continues to grow rapidly in the 2021/22 season as he makes his debuts with leading orchestras and continues to develop his reputation as one of the foremost interpreters of Czech repertoire.

Recent debut performances have included appearances with the Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse, Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra Katowice, Danish National Symphony, Orquesta Sinfonica de Tenerife, St. Gallen Symphony Orchestra, Geneva Chamber, Czech Radio Symphony at the Dvořák Prague Festival and Pilsen Philharmonic. In the 2021/22 season, symphonic debuts include concerts with the Aalborg Symphony, Scottish Chamber, Hallé, MDR Leipzig and Slovak Philharmonic. Soloist collaborations have featured internationally recognised names such as Esther Yoo, Kian Soltani, Kirill Gerstein, Vadim Gluzman, Lukáš Vondráček and Lawrence Brownlee. This season sees Rožeň making his opera debut in Prague conducting multiple productions at the Prague National Theatre State Opera – Rusalka, a double bill of Weill’s Seven Deadly Sins and Schoenberg’s Erwartung and Schulhoff’s Flammen. The performance of Flammen will be the first in the Czech Republic for 90 years since its 1932 premier in Brno.

Jiří Rožeň: Dvořák- Othello Overture, Czech Philharmonic Orchestra © Česká televize

As a passionate and knowledgeable advocate of Czech music, he regularly presents standard Czech repertoire, as well as music by Bohuslav Martinů, Josef Suk, Leoš Janáček, Viktor Kalabis and Miloslav Kabeláč. He has conducted one of his signature works, Symphony No.4 by Miloslav Kabeláč on various occasions including Austrian premiere with Camerata Salzburg at Salzburg Festival and his conducting debut at Prague Spring Festival with PKF-Prague Philharmonia. Highlights of the 2019/20 season included debuts with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Royal Liverpool Philharmonic. He also conducted all the major orchestras in Belgium – Orchestre national de Belgique, Brussels Philharmonic, Antwerp Symphony Orchestra as well as Orchestre Philharmonique Royal de Liège, and appeared elsewhere with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, Poznan Philharmonic and Staatsorchester Kassel. Rožeň appeared at two prestigious international festivals, returning to Prague Spring Festival with PKF-Prague Philharmonia, performing a special streamed concert in light of the pandemic and debuting in China at the Forest Festival in Nanjing with Jiangsu Symphony Orchestra.

Rožeň is increasingly at home in the pit and during his time in Scotland he conducted Stravinsky’s Mavra, Walton’s The Bear and Strauss’ Die Fledermaus. Elsewhere, he has conducted Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortilegès with the Hamburg Symphony Orchestra as well as Sven Daigger’s Eine Kluge Else at the Brücken-Festival für Neue Musik in Rostock

Born in Prague in 1991, Jiří Rožeň studied conducting at conservatoires and universities of Prague, Salzburg, Hamburg, Zürich and Glasgow, where he was Leverhulme Conducting Fellow. He has seen success in Salzburg and London as the Finalist of both the Nestlé and Salzburg Festival Young Conductors Award and the Donatella Flick LSO Conducting Competition. Formerly Assistant Conductor at the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Jiří was working alongside Donald Runnicles and Thomas Dausgaard and assisted them at the BBC Proms and the Edinburgh International Festival. His mentors have included Garry Walker, Dennis Russell Davies, Ulrich Windfuhr and Johannes Schlaefli. Other important influences include Daniele Gatti, Bernard Haitink, David Zinman and Peter Eötvös in masterclasses with orchestras such as the Concertgebouworkest, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France and Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich.

HarrisonParrott represents Jiří Rožeň for worldwide general management.

Gallery

Jiří Rožeň Petra Hajská / Czech Philharmonic

Wilhelm Stenhammar: Excelsior!, op. 13. © Hiroshima Symphony Orchestra

Jiří Rožeň conducts Viktor Kalabis's Concerto for Harpsichord and String Orchestra © Koncerty Českého rozhlasu

‘Prague born Rožeň prospered conducting the Hallé in a sterling performance of Dvořák’s Seventh Symphony, energised with this work by a fellow Czech…Under Rožeň the players excelled, with successful emphasis on the striking contrasts of this glorious score, evoking dark depths of anguish to unwavering rebelliousness to warm and brightly lit pastoral landscapes.’

(Michael Cookson, Seen and Heard, March 2022)

“Still, the real star of the evening was in the pit. Just 30, Jiří Rožeň is a major emerging talent who was born in Prague but has spent most of his career abroad, conducting orchestras throughout Europe and developing a particular expertise in modern opera. He drove Todsünden with expert pacing, smart support for the singers and dance rhythms that crackled with energy. Erwartung was even better. Working with an orchestra and instrumentation reduced by pandemic restrictions, Rožeň spun out a sophisticated atonal score, striking in its clarity and precision.”

(4*, Frank Kuznik, Bachtrack, November 2021)

“Yesterday’s concert provided further evidence that his superlative reviews [….] are totally justified. Rožeň has energy, a pleasant youthful aura, and a very clear and logical vision for interpretation. Thanks to this, the concert was nothing short of magical.”

Opera Plus, February 2018

“A spark of mutual admiration and respect [with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra] was obvious!”

(Opera Plus, November 2017)

“One should also highlight the great shape of the Janáček Philharmonic Orchestra who delivered one of their best ever performances under Jiří Rožeň.”

(Opera Plus, May 2017)

“This was an example of how a debut [at Prague Spring Festival] should be done. The concert culminated with the Symphony No.4 by Kabeláč executed with absolute assurance”

(Harmonie, May 2016)

“Rising star of conducting dealt with the challenging task [Prague Spring Festival Debut] professionally and with joy.”

(Opera Plus, May 2016)