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The ensemble follows the ideas of Professor Miroslav Venhoda and his never-ending activity in so called ancient music. The ensemble performs in a vocal-instrumental group with special stress on the man vocals as a unit that has a connection with historically illuminated interpretation of ancient music. He tries to get closer to the interpretation ideal that should translate the idea of a number of music scholars connected especially with the period of renaissance and early baroque. The ensemble was founded by artists who are engaged with the interpretation of historic music for a long time and have much experience from the cooperation with Czech and foreign top choruses and conductors.
The Prague Madrigal Singers want to recall the great effort of Professor M. Venhoda when discovering and producing the long forgotten compositions. The bass singer and organ player Michael Pospíšil (nowadays one of the best Czech musicologists) provides the dramaturgy and the arrangement for the group and artistically conducts the whole ensemble. The ensemble has followed with its Music opus the tradition of premier creations that the Czech audience knows as the Concerts on The Stairway of The National Museum in Prague. In 1997, the Prague Madrigal Singers realized here their cycle of the premier concerts of renaissance and early baroque music, called The music of the century of angels and fiends. The pillar of these concerts was the music of Claudio Monteverdi and his contemporaries. These drama creations of Michael Pospíšil were also introduced the same year with a big succes at the international festivals in Slovakia. The year 1998 was the year of two important records.
With their hosts they realized the record for the Czech radio called Czech vespers, that is formed by the compositions of Czech authors from the second half of 17th century. This is an important period in Czech music history when Bohemia was called the Conservatory of Europe! Other important record was realized in 1999 for the Czech presticious recording company Supraphon. The CD is called Flos Florum meaning the Flower of flowers - Italian vespers in Bohemia approximately 1650. They are the compositions of mostly Italian authors who have a certain connection with the Czech territory. Within the framework of the project Prague The City of Culture 2000 the group has realized a concert at the Prague Castle with baroque program called Laudate Pueri with the record for the Czech Television. They have introduces themselves also in Cieszyn at the International festival of organ, chamber music and choral songs. In December 2000 they performed in the chamber cycle of Prague symphonies "Ancient music" with their new Christmas program Peregrinatio Bethlehemitica.
In spring 2001, The ensemble introduced a new project called Easter tinsel-Spread arms, fold arms with the record for the Czech radio at the International Easter Festival of Spiritual Music in Brno 2001. They produced a project called Czech Vespers for the Festiwal Muzyki Sakralnej in Warzsawa.
The ensemble is nowadays one of the best music groups and is desired on the Czech concerts podiums, in Czech radio and in Czech Television but also abroad. It can react to the needs and wishes of the organizers especially because of the big musicology abilities of the art director Michael Pospisil. In his arrangements, he projects to the concerts also historical continuity that is connected to the development of each regions, places and towns. The Prague Chamber Singers will organize concerts Germany, France and Greece and also for the prestigious Christmas project in Bruxelles. The ensemble was founded in the spring 1996 and introduced itself to the Czech public at the concert on July 6 of the same year at the castle room of former prelature in Cistercian cloister in Plasy in the Western Bohemia.
According to the kind of the program, requirements and financial possibilities of the organizer. The ensemble performs in vocal - instrumental group 4-9 people that is 1-3 cars. Small portative organ (that is small pipe organ, air bellows independent on electricity) complemented with violin da gamba, lute, tiorba or baroque guitar serves as an accompanying instrument. Small group of instruments (cornetto, violino, trombone or dulcian) usually accompanies the man voices. |
