London Royal Opera names new conductor

Authored by Viviane Kim

On Oct. 17, London’s Royal Opera House announced the appointment of Czech conductor Jakub Hrůša as leading Music Director. Age 41, he will head the Opera’s orchestra as well as accompany the Royal Ballet. 

The prestigious company was founded in 1946, receiving its title and a Royal Charter in 1968. Several IAA and IAC alumni have worked atthe Royal Opera House including Michael Kaiser (arts administration) and Damon Evans (voice). Hrůša will follow six previous directorsincluding Georg Solti andColin Davis. His immediate predecessor, Antonio Pappano, held the position for 22 years and has been a regularGramophone Classical Music Award winner. 

Hrůša studied conducting in Prague with acclaimed Czech conductor Jiří Bělohláveka at the Academy of Performing Arts. In order to takeon his new position, Hrůša will be leaving his post as conductor of the famed German Bamberg Symphony. He is also Principal GuestConductor of the Czech Philharmonic and the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, as well as the President of The DvořákSociety. Furthermore, Hrůša’s operatic experience is rich, having conducted operas in Salzburg, Vienna, Paris, Zurich, and Frankfurt atworld-renowned venues. He is a regular collaborator with the Berlin and Vienna Philharmonics and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestrain Amsterdam. In the U.S., he has played with the Cleveland Orchestra, Boston Symphony, and Chicago Symphony. His 2017 New YorkPhilharmonic debut included works by Dvořák and Janáček, which the New York Times’s Anthony Tommasini hailed as “colorful andexciting”.

Hrůša’s program choices notably honor his homeland. In an exclusive interview with the Guardian, he revealed he would be shifting theRoyal Opera’s emphasis from Italian to Czech. In addition, Hrůša hopes to grow the orchestra’s contemporary repertoire. In his view,“there’s nothing as exciting as bringing something brand new to the world.” As music director, he aims to keep the opera relevant tomodern times as representing the “eternal quality of art,” while also existing as “an institution which is with in their lives and connected toreality.”

Hrůša’s future plans include a full cycle of Der Ring des Nibelungen by Wagner—this will be the first time the Royal Opera performs thepiece in almost a decade. 

While Hrůša’s appointment has been met with great enthusiasm from the music community, he will have to grapple with a formidable 15percent budget cut dealt by the British government to cultural institutions in London.