2025

The year 2025 was one of the most productive to date, owing to a number of major projects realized during the year: two sheet music publications, two radio and film documentaries, and a record number of new recordings of the composer s music that continued to be performed around the globe.

In the spring of 2025, Czech Radio Publishing House made available an orchestral reduction of Kapralova s Piano Concerto in D Minor. The project was initiated by Amy I-Lin Cheng, a pianist and assistant professor at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theater & Dance, and financially assisted by the university and our Society. At about the same time, Faber Music published a Women Composers Piano Anthology that included Kapralova s April Prelude No. 3.

At the very beginning of 2025, the national broadcaster Czech Radio produced a 150-minute radio documentary on the composer s life for the composer s 110th anniversary, in collaboration with our Society. The documentary was first broadcast on January 20 24, in five 30-minute episodes, as part of the radio series OSUDY. Also in 2025, Cinepoint, in partnership with Czech Television, produced KAPRALOVA, a feature-length film documentary by Petr Zaruba. The film was premiered on October 26, 2025, during the 2025 Jihlava Documentary Film Festival.

The year 2025 saw an impressive number of releases of Kapralova s music four re-releases and eight new recordings produced by both established and independent Canadian, German, Austrian, Czech, French, British, and US labels. In January, Canadian label Leaf Music released a recording of Caitlin Broms-Jacobs and Madeline Hildebrand, which included an arrangement for oboe and piano of Kapralova s song Jitro from Two Songs, op. 4. In March, Genuin Records released "Herstory," an album recorded by pianist Mitra Kotte and dedicated to women s music. Her collection included Kapralova s April Preludes. Another Austrian label, HNE, released "Female Composers Vol. II: Lost Traces," a recording by Duo Artdeco Wien, which included Kapralova s Elegy for violin and piano. In April, Czech label ArcoDiva produced, in collaboration with the University of Michigan School of Music and the Kapralova Society, an album that has earned an important place in Kapralova s discography. The disc "Apple Train: Music of Bodorova and Kapralova" features seven works composed by Kapralova, performed by foremost Czech ensembles and soloists, and includes three world premiere recordings: Two Choruses for Women s Voices, and the songs V zemi ceske (In the Bohemian land) and Pisen delniku Pane (Song of the workers of the Lord). In June, French orchestra Appassionato, conducted by Mathieu Herzog, released their fine recording "Boheme," showcasing orchestral pieces by Nedbal, Dvorak, Fibich, and Kapralova (Suite en miniature). Kapralova s Tales of a Small Flute was included in the album of miniatures for recorder and piano, "A Few More Surprises," released by Prima Facie in July. In August, Chandos Records released "Sparks from Ashes," an album of songs by Dvorak, Bartok, Kricka, and Kapralova, recorded by tenor Nicky Spence and pianist Dylan Perez. Kapralova is represented on the disc with her art song Waving Farewell and the song cycle Sparks from Ashes. Just before Christmas, the Czech pianist Tomas Visek released his recording of Kapralova's Piano Concerto in D Minor. The four re-releases were compilation discs released by Naxos, featuring individual movements from Kapralova s Suite en miniature (performed by University of Michigan Orchestra under the baton of Kenneth Kiesler).

Besides Kapralova s songs and her piano preludes that continued to be immensely popular with international singers and pianists, it was the composer s string quartet and orchestral Suita rustica that were most frequently performed in 2025. The composer s music was programmed by soloists and ensembles in as many as fifteen countries: Austria, Canada, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the UK, and the US. It is worth mentioning that over the past two years, and for the first time in the performance history of Kapralova s music, there has been a sharp increase in the number of performances of her works in German speaking countries.

The recordings that garnered much attention in 2025 included two of the previous year s releases: the double album of Kapralova s orchestral works, released by cpo, and Cedille s album of songs by Schreker, Ullmann, Zemlinsky, and Kapralova, recorded by Ian Koziara and Bradley Moore. The cpo recording, which was financially assisted by the Society, was already well received at the time of its release in 2024, but it has since been shortlisted for the 2025 Gramophone Awards and, at the end of the year, it received Diapason d or de l ann e, a prestigious prize awarded by a jury of critics from Diapason magazine and France Musique. The Koziara and Moore disc continued to receive rave reviews, this time in Fanfare, Hyde Park Herald, and Third Coast Review. Of the 2025 releases, the Chandos album of songs by Dvorak, Bartok, Kricka, and Kapralova, with the latter composer s art songs prominently featured on the disc, was the most successful, becoming PrestoMusic s disc of the week in August, and being favourably reviewed in the BBC Music Magazine, Gramophone, La Scena Musicale, and Opera Now. Other 2025 CD releases were reviewed by Klasika Plus and Dvorak Society Newsletter (Apple Train), Whole Note (Sing to Me Again), and Dvorak Society Newsletter and webmusicinternational (A Few More Surprises). As to concert reviews, Marek Kozak s performance of Kapralova s April Preludes was reviewed by Opera Plus, Bard Festival s presentation of the composer s only string quartet was reviewed in St. Louis Arts Scene and BershireEdge, whereas Zorman and Jokubaviciute s rendition of her Legend for violin and piano was reviewed in Strad. As to the composer s orchestral music, a performance of the Military Sinfonietta (Leon Botstein and The Orchestra Now) was reviewed in New York Classical Review that also reviewed NY Repertory Orchestra s performance of her Suita rustica. Another performance of the Military Sinfonietta, this time by Trinity Laban Symphony, was reviewed in the Dvorak Society Newsletter, and a rendition of Kapralova s Suita rustica, by the PSN Festival Orchestra, was reviewed in OperaPlus.

In 2025, the German label CPO released the world premiere recording of Agnes Tyrrell's Grand Sonata whose score was published in 2021 by the Kapralova Society. The sonata is the most substantial piece on the album that also includes the Tyrrell's smaller pieces for piano and some choral music. Also in 2025, our open-access journal of women in music changed the frequency of publication, becoming an annual journal. The first yearly issue (volume 23) opened with Asher Ian Armstrong s feature "Vitezslava Kapralova's Sonata Appassionata: A Pianist Perspective," followed by Erik Entwistle s article "Kapralova s Bell Tower" that presented the author's research of the interesting history of the composer s Carillon variations. Tom Moore s series Women of the 19th-Century Salon continued with a vignette on Mme Esther Becquie. The issue carried the Kapralova Society's report "Year in Review 2024," and was rounded off with the usual "In Review" section that included two reviews of Kapralova s debut at the 2024 BBC Proms, written by Patrick Lambert and Chris Kettle.

We would like to thank the artists who promoted Kapralova s music in 2025 in Austria, Canada, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and United States: Alma Rose Streichquartett, Balourdet Quartet, Karolina Alena Bartonkova, Berklee Contemporary Symphony Orchestra, Renata Bialasova, Nada Blahova, Karolina Bohmova, Leon Botstein, Katelyn Bouska, Dean Buck, Sarah Cahill, Rita Castelo Branco, Vojtech Cervenka, Chester Philharmonic, Joe Clark, Cleveland Philharmonic Orchestra, Linda Coganova, Arturo Corrales, Maggie Czekan, Hanna Dahlkvist, Christian Damus, Nolwenn Danhyer, Michelle di Russo, Vaclav Dlask, Evlana Ensemble, Lucy Farrimond, George Xiaoyuan Fu, Milada Gajdova, Adam Glaser, Julian Grabarek, Onute Grazinyte, Francesca Grisanti, Lilian Grusz, Pavel Haas Quartet, Anezka Hladikova, Kamila Holikova, Emil Holmstrom, Hofstra Symphony and Chamber Orchestras, Kamila Holikova, Alena Hron, Irene Huang, Marie Jakabova, Roman Janal, Marcela Jelinkova, Jihoceska filharmonie, Ieva Jokubavisiute, Viktorie Kaplanova, Maria Kasznia, Francine Kay, Ryan Kee, Daniel Seonggeun Kim, Martina Kominkova, Mitra Kotte, Marek Kozak, Eveliina Kytomaki, Erkki Lahesmaa, Eric Laine, Adam Laloum, Mark Lathem, David Leibowitz, Lohjan kaupunginorkesteri, Luzerner Sinfonieorchester, Melissa Majoni, Leo Margue, Krystof Matejicek, Musikfreunde Heidelberg, NeoKlasik Orchestra, Tomas Netopil, New Hampshire Philharmonic Orchestra, New York Repertory Orchestra, Alexander Nick, Beth Nielsen, Orchestre des Trois Ch ne, Orquestra Sinfonica Portuguesa, Caroline Owen, Antonio Oyarzabal, Natalie Pachlova, Leona Peleskova, Sally Pinkas, Dominika Pivonkova, Pavol Pra enica, PSN Orchestra, Samuel Racek, Jana Rambouskova, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Natalia S nchez Abad, Maria Sbeglia, Iveta Schejbalova, Rene Schuh, Sinfonieorchester Biel Solothurn, Katerina Skarova, Jonathan Small, Nat lie mausov , Ludmila Smidova, Vitezslava Smidova, Gregory Smith, Josef Spacek, Nadia Stiegler, Eduardo Strausser, Elodi Suquet, Michelle Tapp, Darya Tchaikovsky, The Orchestra Now, Julian Trevelyan, Jukka Untamala, Victoria Ensemble, Tomas Vrana, Beata Vymlatilova, Julius Williams, Itamar Zorman;

and all the others who supported our mission: Absolute Classics Series, ArcoDiva, Asher Ian Armstrong, Tim Ashley, Jennifer Athan, Austrian Embassy in Poland, David Banister, Bard Music Festival, Barrie Concert Association, BBC Music Magazine, BerkshireEdge, Blue Candlelight Music Series, Brno conservatory, Rafael Brom, Cadogan Hall, Chandos Records, Chords & Queens, Cincinnati Song Initiative, Cinepoint, ConcertNet, Conservatorio Luigi Cherubini, Conservatorio Rinaldo Franzi, Conservatorio Sevilla, Conservatory of Aubervilliers-La Courneuve, Katherine Cooper, Czech Consulate in Florence, Czech Radio 3, Darmouth College, Huntley Dent, Diapason magazine, Dny Bohuslava Martinu Festival, Dum hudby Plzen, Dvorak Society Newsletter, Elbphilharmonie, Erik Entwistle, Fanfare, John France, France Musique, Fremde Festival 2025, Galicia Jewish Museum Krakow, Alessandra Garosi, Eugene Gates, Katerina Graffova, Gramophone, George Grella, HAMU, Louis Harris, Terry Heard, Filip Hegr, Jan Hlavac, Bruce Hodges, Hofstra University Department of Music, Hyde Park Herald, IPASA, Janacek Academy of Performing Arts, Jihlava Documentary Film Festival, Chris Kettle, Klasika Plus, Klub moravskych skladatelu, Patrick Lambert, La Scena Musicale, Norman Lebrecht, Lieder Society, Kissinger Summer International Music Festival, Klasika Plus, Klasterni hudebni slavnosti, Konserthuset Stockholm, Matheus Reguta Kulik, Camillia Lin, Live Concerts at Netherby Hall, Judith Mabary, Stanislav Moniuszko Music School Lodz, Montreal Museum of Fine Arts Bourgie Hall, Tom Moore, Jarmila Mrackova, Musique Saint-Joachim, musicwebinternational, Musikverein Vienna, Musique Saint-Joachim, Francis Muzzu, Oskar Nedbal Theater, Veroslav Nemec, New York Classical Review, Opera Grand Avignon, Opera Now, Opera Plus, Nicolas Phan, Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, The Phillips Collection, Prague Summer Nights Festival, PrestoMusic, Radio D-Dur, Radio Proglas, M. L. Rantala, David Roberts, Harry Rolnick, Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, San Francisco Opera, Amaya Sarda, Kai Marius Schabram, Melissa Scott, Sibelius Museum, Signum Open Space, Gabriela Spalkova, Renata Spisarova Kotik, Spolecnost koncertnich umelcu, St. Louis Arts Scene, Strad, Strand International Piano Series, Talichuv Beroun Festival, Tampere Piano Society, Teatro Nacional de Sao Carlos, Third Coast Review, University of Michigan, University of Missouri School of Music, Tomas Visek, Viva la Classica, Larry Wallach, webmusicinternational, Whole Note, Wiesenthal Institute in Vienna, David Wright, George Yeh, and ZUS Vitezslavy Kapralove.