15th International Organ Festival in St. Vitus Cathedral

St. Vitus
Organ
Evenings

30/6–1/9 2026

The festival

The Metropolitan Chapter of St. Vitus in Prague, in cooperation with the Prague Castle Administration, is proud to present the 15th annual International Organ Music Festival at the Cathedral of Saints Vitus, Wenceslaus, and Adalbert.

St. Vitus Organ Evenings is a unique summer festival that offers you the opportunity to listen to masterpieces of organ music right in the heart of the Cathedral of Saints Vitus, Wenceslaus, and Adalbert at Prague Castle.

Each year, the festival brings leading organists from both the Czech Republic and abroad to the cathedral. This year will be no exception, as we welcome performers from the USA, Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, and the Czech Republic. The program will be further enriched by a concert featuring a symphony orchestra and a special evening with a guest soloist on the French horn. A true celebration of organ music awaits.

The 15th edition will be extraordinary in many respects. For the first time, the festival will feature the new and long-awaited cathedral organ. Additionally, visitors can look forward to a double portion of musical experiences, with a total of ten concert evenings.

Immerse yourself in the majestic acoustics of the Gothic cathedral and let yourself be carried away by the tones of the new cathedral organ—all within Prague’s most breathtaking historical gem!

Festival programme

Concerts begin at 7.00 p.m.

As is tradition, tickets will be available for purchase through the following portals: GoOut, Ticketportal, and Via Musica, as well as at the Prague Castle Information Center (3rd Courtyard).

30/6
Cameron Carpenter (USA)
– BACH – CARPENTER –

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7/7
Ondřej Valenta and orchestra Symphony Prague, conductor Johannes Skudlik (DE)
– BACH – WIDOR – SAINT-SAËNS –

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14/7
Willibald Guggenmos (CH/DE)
– LISZT – BRUCKNER – VIERNE –

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21/7
Michaela Káčerková and Ondřej Vrabec (french horn)
– VIERNE – SAINT-SAËNS – LITAIZE –

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28/7
Ben van Oosten (NL)
– BACH – FRANCK – VIERNE – DUPRÉ –

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4/8
Pavel Černý
– BACH – REGER – BOK –

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11/8
Michal Novenko and Jiří Houdek (trumpet)
– LUYTHON – TELEMANN – NOVENKO –

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18/8
Jaroslav Tůma
– KLIČKA – JANÁČEK – EBEN –

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25/8
Ondřej Valenta
a Markéta Fassati (soprano)
– BONNET – STANFORD – SMART –

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1/9
Konstantin Reymaier (A)
– BACH – BRUCKNER – SCHUMANN –

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Performing Artists

Ben van Oosten

Dutch organist Ben van Oosten is widely regarded as one of the foremost interpreters of the French symphonic organ repertoire on the international stage. He studied in Amsterdam and Paris, made his concert debut at a young age, and has since appeared at many of the world’s leading concert halls. He has recorded the complete organ works of César Franck, Charles-Marie Widor, Louis Vierne, Marcel Dupré and Camille Saint-Saëns, earning numerous accolades including the Echo Klassik. He is organist of the Grote Kerk in The Hague and an emeritus professor at the Codarts Conservatory in Rotterdam.

Cameron Carpenter

American organist Cameron Carpenter is a phenomenon on the contemporary organ scene. He studied at the Juilliard School in New York and became the first organist to be nominated for a Grammy Award. He gained recognition through his International Touring Organ project, a mobile instrument of his own design, with which he performs around the world. He collaborates with leading orchestras, records for Sony Classical, and is a recipient of both the ECHO Klassik and the Leonard Bernstein Award. His artistry brings together traditional craftsmanship and a distinctly modern vision.

Pavel Černý

Organist and organologist Pavel Černý teaches at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, where he specialises in organ performance and improvisation. He is a laureate of competitions in Opava, Ljubljana and at the Prague Spring Festival. He has performed on three continents and is involved in both the restoration of historic organs and the construction of new instruments, including the organ at St. Vitus Cathedral. As a jury member and creator of radio programmes, he is one of the leading figures of the Czech organ scene, active for many years as a performer, teacher and organologist.

Markéta Fassati

Soprano Markéta Fassati studied at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague and is a laureate of the Emmy Destinn Competition and Ad honorem Mozart. She has performed at the National Theatre, the State Opera, the Rudolfinum and at various international festivals. Her extensive repertoire includes Baroque opera and Romantic works, song cycles and arias, as well as contemporary styles, including jazz and film music. She collaborates with Czech and international orchestras and is one of the most sought-after performers on the Czech music scene.

Willibald Guggenmos

German organist Willibald Guggenmos performs worldwide, earning critical acclaim for both his brilliant technique and his artistry. He studied piano, conducting and organ in Munich, and has appeared in some of the most prestigious cathedrals in the world, including Notre-Dame in Paris and St Paul’s in London. For many years he served as organist at St. Gallen Cathedral, and he now acts as director of the International Organ Festival in Augsburg. His recordings are a testament to the breadth and depth of his musical personality.

Jiří Houdek

Trumpeter Jiří Houdek is a laureate of the Concertino Praga competition and principal trumpet of both the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra and the National Theatre Orchestra in Prague. He has appeared with many leading ensembles in the Czech Republic and abroad, and is a regular guest with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra and the Solistes Européens Luxembourg. He has been recording since 1996, and his discography includes works from both the classical and contemporary repertoire. He is regarded as one of the leading Czech trumpet players.

Michaela Káčerková

Czech organist and music manager Michaela Káčerková is one of the leading figures of the contemporary music scene. She studied in Prague and Leipzig and performs across Europe, Japan and South America. She has collaborated with orchestras including the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra, Capella Regia Praha and Barocco Sempre Giovane. She is the founder of the J. C. F. Fischer International Music Festival and acts as director of the Karlovy Vary Symphony Orchestra. Her recordings in the series Historical Organs of the Karlovy Vary Region represent a unique project showcasing Czech culture.

Michal Novenko

Organist and composer Michal Novenko studied at the Prague Conservatory and the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, as well as attending masterclasses with Jean Guillou in Paris. He has performed throughout Europe, the United States, South Africa, and Mexico. He is a professor of organ at the Prague Conservatory and serves on the juries of various international competitions. He collaborates with the British label Priory Records, for which he has recorded numerous historical organs across Europe. His performances are notable for their refinement and improvisational creativity.

Symphony Prague

The Symphony Prague orchestra, founded in 2008, brings together leading players from the Czech Philharmonic, Prague Symphony Orchestra (FOK), Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra and the National Theatre Orchestra. Symphony Prague appears on major European stages and acts as an ambassador for Czech music in Germany, France, Spain, and Austria. Its repertoire includes works by Dvořák, Smetana, Janáček, and other great composers. The ensemble collaborates with leading soloists and its principal conductor is Štefan Britvík.

Konstantin Reymaier

Austrian organist and priest Konstantin Reymaier studied music and theology in Vienna and has taught at the universities of Cambridge and Oxford. He served as Director of Church Music for the Archdiocese of Vienna and led the project for building of the new organ in St. Stephen’s Cathedral, where he has served as organist since 2016. He gives concerts across Europe, the United States and the Middle East, and records for Priory Records and Deutsche Grammophon. He is widely recognised for the depth of his interpretation and his musical sensitivity.

Johannes Skudlik

Conductor and organist Johannes Skudlik is from Munich and performs internationally with orchestras such as the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra, and I Virtuosi Italiani. He has appeared at the Philharmonie Berlin, the Elbphilharmonie, and the Sagrada Família, and in 2022 made his debut at the Teatro La Fenice. His repertoire includes Mahler, Bruckner, Tchaikovsky, and Berlioz. Since 2016 he has served as principal guest conductor at Symphony Prague and leads masterclasses around the world.

Jaroslav Tůma

Jaroslav Tůma is a Czech organist, harpsichordist and teacher, professor at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague and has won prizes at competitions in Haarlem, Leipzig and Linz. He performs worldwide and his discography comprises more than sixty CDs. As titular organist at Svatá Hora in Příbram, he has recorded the complete organ works of J. S. Bach and, through a range of audiovisual projects, has helped to popularise music. As a composer and author of various publications, he consistently combines artistic precision with his own distinctive voice.

Ondřej Valenta

Ondřej Valenta is organist at St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague, a concert organist, and teacher at the Prague Conservatory. Between 2016 and 2024 he served as organist and choirmaster of the Royal Collegiate Chapter at Vyšehrad, where he founded the international festival “Organ Vyšehrad”. He studied at the Prague Conservatory and the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, and continued his education at the Mozarteum University in Salzburg and in Munich. He performs with soloists, choirs and orchestras, and appears at festivals across the Czech Republic and in many European countries.

Ondřej Vrabec

Conductor and horn player Ondřej Vrabec is a soloist with the Czech Philharmonic and Chief Conductor of the Karlovy Vary Symphony Orchestra. He has appeared with leading orchestras across Europe and Asia and has collaborated with internationally acclaimed conductors such as Sir John Eliot Gardiner and Semyon Bychkov. He has won prizes at numerous competitions and records for both Czech and international labels. He teaches at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague and is a highly respected artist with an exceptionally broad repertoire.

Past years

Are you interested in who performed in past years and what they played? You can download official program brochures dating back to the 10th edition here.