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The laureate of the Czech Chamber Music Society Award for 2023 is the Kalabis Quintet, a wind ensemble composed of Zuzana Leimer, Jarmila Jermářová, Anna Sysová, Denisa Beňovská and Adéla Psohlavcová. On behalf of the Czech Chamber Music Society, the award was presented to them by the dramaturge Radek Křižanovský, the vice-chairman Jan Králík and the managing director Jiří Ludvík.
“We feel extremely grateful to receive the Czech Chamber Music Society Award and we are very honoured to be among the leading artistic ensembles to receive this exceptional award. On top of that, we are simply delighted that our twelve-year collaboration, which has been interwoven with Czech music and friendship, has been recognised in this way.”
— Kalabis Quintet members
The Czech Chamber Music Society Award has existed since 1981 and is awarded for the most valuable performances in the field of chamber music to ensembles whose members are on average no older than 35 years. In the forty years of its existence, the Czech Chamber Music Society Award has been awarded thirty-three times. The Kocian Quartet was the first to receive the award, and the Bohémo Trio was the last to receive it in 2022.
The Czech Chamber Music Society Award includes a graphic sheet by the Czech painter and graphic artist Míla Fürstová, a cash prize and a concert to be held on 18 January 2025 in the Martinů Hall as part of the next 130th anniversary season of the Czech Chamber Music Society. The laureate for 2023 was decided by a jury composed of Jaroslav Kulhan, Jiří Hlaváč, Jiří Panocha, Josef Špaček Jr., Marek Šulc, Miroslav Sekera and Radek Křižanovský.
“Kalabis Quintet was founded in 2012 at HAMU. The awarding board of the Czech Chamber Music Society has been following the ensemble for a long time and there was an absolute consensus to award the prize. The Kalabis Quintet is a very high quality ensemble, and we especially appreciate its relationship to Czech music, both traditional and contemporary.”
— Radek Křižanovský, dramaturg of the Czech Chamber Music Society
