Vlach Quartet Prague

Founded in 1982 by Czech violinist Jana Vlachová the Vlach Quartet Prague is a Czech classical string quartet.

The original Vlach Quartet was founded in 1949 and wound up in 1975. The Vlach Quartet Prague is linked to the Vlach Quartet by family connection (father and daughter) in the Vlach family.

The current quartet is made up of Jana Vlachová (violin), Karel Stadtherr (violin), Jiří Kabát (viola) and Mikael Ericsson (cello). The Vlach Quartet Prague has received a number of prizes, including an award as the best string quartet among the European competition at the International String Quartet Competition in Portsmouth, England, in 1985.

They perform extensively throughout Europe, and many of their performances have been broadcast on the radio and television. They have toured in the United States, New Zealand and Japan. In 2004 the Vlach Quartet Prague was Quartet-in-Residence in Schengen, Luxembourg.

The Vlach Quartet Prague’s performances and broadcasts focus on the famous repertoire for the string quartet by Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Brahms, and on to Bartók and Shostakovich – and also on distinctive Czech repertoire, including the works of Czech composers Antonín Dvořák, Bedřich Smetana, Leoš Janáček, and Bohuslav Martinů.

Fun Fact

The Wiener Philharmoniker Gold coin is made of pure gold, 999.9 fine (24 carats). It is issued every year, in four different face values, sizes and weights. It is used as an investment product, although it finishes almost always in the hands of collectors. According to the World Gold Council, this coin was the best selling gold coin in 1992, 1995 and 1996 worldwide.