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| Ars Nova Ensemble | |
|---|---|
| Name | Ars Nova Ensemble |
| Origin | Prague, Czech Republic |
| Genre | Contemporary classical, Early music, Choral |
| Years active | 1990–present |
| Labels | Supraphon, Naxos, ECM |
| Associated acts | Czech Philharmonic, Prague Spring International Music Festival, Dvořák Prague International Music Festival, Czech Radio |
Ars Nova Ensemble Ars Nova Ensemble is a Prague-based chamber ensemble noted for performances of contemporary and early music. Founded in 1990, the group has maintained a presence in Central European concert life through collaborations with composers, conductors, and cultural institutions. Its activities intersect with festival programming, recording projects, and pedagogical initiatives across Europe.
The ensemble was formed amid the post-1989 cultural renaissance in the Czech lands, sharing concert calendars with organizations such as Prague Spring International Music Festival, Czech Philharmonic, National Theatre (Prague), Václav Havel Library, and Prague Castle. Early seasons featured works linked to historical centers like St. Wenceslas Cathedral, Charles University, Czech Museum of Music, and partnerships with ensembles including Ensemble Modern, Ictus Ensemble, London Sinfonietta, and Hilliard Ensemble. Tours reached venues associated with institutions such as Wiener Musikverein, Konzerthaus Berlin, Royal Festival Hall, Carnegie Hall, and festivals including Salzburg Festival, Edinburgh Festival, Warsaw Autumn and Ultima Oslo Contemporary Music Festival. The ensemble’s trajectory intersected with cultural policy shifts at bodies like Ministry of Culture (Czech Republic) and funding schemes from European Cultural Foundation, Arts Council England, and Creative Europe.
Ars Nova Ensemble’s repertoire juxtaposes medieval, Renaissance and contemporary compositions, programming works by figures such as Guillaume de Machaut, Claudio Monteverdi, Heinrich Schütz, Johann Sebastian Bach, Antonín Dvořák, Bohuslav Martinů, Leoš Janáček, Bedřich Smetana, Olivier Messiaen, Igor Stravinsky, Arnold Schoenberg, Alban Berg, Anton Webern, Pierre Boulez, Karlheinz Stockhausen, György Ligeti, Krzysztof Penderecki, Helmut Lachenmann, Luciano Berio, Tōru Takemitsu, John Cage, György Kurtág and contemporary composers like Petr Eben, Bohuslav Martinů interpreters, Ondřej Adámek, Martin Smolka, Rostislav Macek, Petr Wajsar, Václav Riedlbauch, Vítězslav Novák. The ensemble has commissioned pieces from living composers linked to institutions such as Academy of Music and Performing Arts in Prague, Royal College of Music, Juilliard School, and collaborated with librettists, vocal soloists, and instrumentalists connected to Prague Conservatory and Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts. Programming often references historical manuscripts housed at the National Library of the Czech Republic, Moravian Library, and archives like Bodleian Library and Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale di Firenze.
Leadership has included artistic directors and conductors drawn from Prague’s conservatories and orchestras, with personnel linked to Czech Philharmonic, Prague Symphony Orchestra, Prague Chamber Orchestra, Cappella Mariana, Czech National Symphony Orchestra, Collegium 1704, Barocco Sempre Giovane, and Prague Madrigalists. Soloists and section principals have affiliations with Metropolitan Opera, Royal Opera House, Bayerische Staatsoper, Opéra National de Paris, Deutsche Oper Berlin, National Theatre (Prague), and chamber groups such as Ars Antiqua Austria and Les Arts Florissants. Administrative and artistic management have engaged with cultural institutions including Municipal House (Prague), Prague City Hall, Institute of Musicology (Czech Academy of Sciences), and funding partners like European Commission cultural programs.
Concerts presented works in collaboration with festivals and venues such as Prague Spring International Music Festival, Salzburg Festival, Edinburgh Festival, Warsaw Autumn, Tanglewood Music Festival, La Biennale di Venezia, Musiques en Scène, and halls including Wiener Musikverein, Konzerthaus Berlin, Royal Festival Hall, and Carnegie Hall. Recording projects were released on labels associated with Supraphon, Naxos, ECM Records, Harmonia Mundi, Deutsche Grammophon, and archive labels tied to Czech Radio. Repertoire recorded ranges from medieval motets and Renaissance masses to 20th- and 21st-century chamber cycles, including world-premiere recordings of commissioned works premiered at institutions such as Prague Spring International Music Festival and Warsaw Autumn.
Outreach programs connected the ensemble to conservatories and universities such as Prague Conservatory, Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, Charles University, Royal Academy of Music, Royal College of Music, Juilliard School, Yale School of Music, and summer academies like Aldeburgh Festival Academy, Tanglewood Music Center, and Dartington International Summer School. Workshops, masterclasses, and residencies were held in partnership with cultural foundations including British Council, Goethe-Institut, Institut Français, American Center Prague, and municipal cultural offices across cities like Brno, Ostrava, Pilsen, Olomouc, Karlovy Vary, Vienna, Berlin, Paris, London, New York, and Tokyo.
The ensemble has been acknowledged by prize-giving bodies and institutions such as Gramophone Awards, MIDEM Classical Awards, Czech Music Fund, Prague Spring Competition, International Classical Music Awards, and national honors conferred by Ministry of Culture (Czech Republic), municipal commendations from City of Prague, and festival accolades from Prague Spring International Music Festival and Warsaw Autumn.
Category:Chamber music ensembles