Olomouc Welcomes Back the Autumn Festival of Sacred Music – Kudy z Boredy!
The Autumn Festival of Sacred Music Olomouc is celebrating its 32nd year this year. From September 21 to October 18, 2025, it will feature an exciting lineup of performances by talented musicians and singers from both the local area and other countries. The festival will highlight the unique atmosphere of the city of Olomouc, known for its many churches, temples, and other fascinating historical and contemporary buildings that provide a wonderful setting for concerts enjoyed by an appreciative audience. The festival’s organizers have kept the needs and preferences of the city’s residents and visitors at the forefront during the planning process.
Visitors can look forward to nine concerts held at various notable venues, including the Church of Our Lady of the Snows, the Archbishop’s Palace, St. Wenceslas Cathedral, St. Michael’s Church, the Basilica of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary at Svatý Kopeček, the Fresco Hall of Komenia Primary School, the Red Church, and the House at the Park. There will even be one concert at the Chateau Čechy pod Kosířem. This year’s program promises a diverse and unique selection of music, mainly featuring European sacred music spanning over six centuries. The Autumn Festival of Sacred Music has been taking place in Olomouc since 1994 and has become one of the most significant events focusing on sacred music in the Czech Republic.
Highlights from This Year’s Festival Program
The festival kicks off on Sunday, September 21 in the Archbishop’s Palace with a chamber performance of the Spanish Baroque opera known as zarzuela. These operas, often centered around mythological themes, include a mix of songs, arias, and dances. The festival will start with the zarzuela Ópera escénica deducída de la guerra de los gigantes by composer Sebastián Durón (1660-1716). The title can be translated as War of the Giants. It was created based on an anonymous libretto and likely premiered in Madrid around 1701 to celebrate the wedding of Philip V of Spain and Maria Luisa Gabriela of Savoy. This piece will be performed by the Musica Florea ensemble, conducted by Mark Stryncl, with the talented Spanish violist Marta Infante taking the spotlight.
The second concert will be held outside of Olomouc, at the Čechy pod Kosířem Castle on Wednesday, September 24 at 7:00 PM. This concert will feature a series of fifteen songs from Paul Hindemith’s Marienleben, which sets poems by R.M. Rilke to music, telling the life story of the Virgin Mary from her birth to her death. Hindemith’s song cycle is recognized as a deeply thoughtful work, sophisticated in its composition, and quite unconventional. Soprano Tamara Morozová will perform it with piano accompaniment from Filip Martink, alongside simultaneous dance interpretations by Klára Jelínková.
The first oratorio concert of this year’s festival is set for Sunday October 5 at St. Wenceslas Cathedral, where the Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra Olomouc, under the baton of Slovak conductor Marian Lejava, will perform two substantial meditative works composed in Paris during the early 20th century: Stravinsky’s Psalm Mass and Gabriel Fauré’s Requiem in D minor. This concert will feature two young soloists making their festival debut: soprano Vanesa Čierna and baritone Boris Prýgl.
The concert on Sunday, October 12, will be a festive affair held in the stunning Basilica of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary at Svatý Kopeček. This concert will commemorate the 145th anniversary of the founding of the Žerotín Academic Choir, with performances by the Czech Baroque Ensemble. The festival has made it a priority to showcase works that have been overlooked or lost to history. This year, on the following Wednesday, October 15, there will be a performance in the Fresco Hall featuring instrumental pieces by Olomouc native Gotfried (Bohumír) Finger, a distinguished player of the viola da gamba known for referring to himself as “Godefrido Finger, Olmutio Moravio”.
The festival will conclude with a Gala Concert on October 18, held on Saturday in the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Snows, featuring a concert titled Mysticism in Music, performed by the Bohuslav Martinů Philharmonic Orchestra.
