Matej Drlička

Matej Drlička participated in numerous master classes and internships with renowned figures such as Thomas LeGrand (Texas Music Festival Houston, 1995), Richard Stolzmann (Pittsburgh Hainz-Hall, 1995), Jiří Hlaváč (Semmering, Summer Academy, 1997), Michel Lethiec (International master classes, Piešťany, 1998 and Académie de Telé, 1999), Wenze Grund (Bohemia Festival, 1999) and others.

At the time of his American studies he was a member of the group Tambaritzans which was granted a scholarship to Duquesne University in Pittsburgh (with this ensemble he toured many US states). After returning to Slovakia he became a member of the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra (until 2000) and the Opera Orchestra of The Slovak National Theatre. He performed with his father Peter Drlička as a member of a clarinet duo and the Bratislava Clarinet Quartet.

His repertoire is extensive and diverse – from Classicism it extends to all periods, with an exceptional position for the 20th and 21st century. He premiered many works of domestic and foreign authors. He performed “Concerto for Clarinet and Harp” by Aaron Copland with Chamber Soloists Bratislava under conductor Anton Popovič in Bratislava and also at Central European Music Festival in Žilina, where he won the music critics award, as well as with the Košice Philharmonic Orchestra with conductor Oskar Rózsa. He collaborated with Nice Orchestra, Solistes Européens de Luxembourg, Philharmonie of the Nation, Orchestra Philharmonique de Monte Carlo, the Orchestra of the Munich State Opera and others, and performed under conductors Horst Bredman, Jack Martin Händler, Philippe Bender, Justus Frantz, Marek Janowski, Adam Fisher and others. Abroad, he has been playing chamber music with Michel Lethiec, Mauritio Maretti, Tatjana Vasilyev and in ensembles Quatuor di Monaco, and Ensemble Syrinx.

Currently the focus of his activities has transferred into music management. Since 2005 he is the director and founder of the Festival Musica Viva! (first year under the name of Musical Gardens), which established itself as the largest and most visited summer open-air festival of classical music and jazz in Slovakia. His agency represents domestic and foreign artists and groups of different genres.