Dvorak and popular music

To mark the release of his new album DVORAK vers un monde nouveau, pianist Jonas Vitaud invites you to discover the composer's world

in a concert with commentary

Learn more about Antonin Dvorak

In the wake of Smetana, Dvorak's music inscribes the Origins of a national identity; he embodies a people proclaiming its culture.

Inspired first and foremost by Europe's scholarly heritage, the life of the Bohemian people never ceases to irrigate his music.
Including numerous dances and composed mainly of miniatures, Dvorak's piano music is colorful and rhythmic, influenced by Czech national folklore.

Dvorak's piano music is colorful and rhythmic, influenced by Czech national folklore.

Dvorak's piano music is colorful and rhythmic, influenced by Czech national folklore

Find out more about Jonas Vitaud

"Evidence of architecture, supple lines, fullness and richness of timbre: with a magical Lied at its heart, akin to a meditation on the immensity of the cosmos, this interpretation (Sonate opus 1 by Henri Dutilleux) of uncommon density is to be ranked among the great versions of the repertoire..."
Alain Cochard

" ... He produces highly sympathetic, beatifully phrased and voiced accounts of these pieces with their elusive moods and half-lights: a pleasure to hear..."
BBC Music Magazine

Born in 1980, Jonas Vitaud began playing the piano at the age of 6 and the organ at 11. Trained by Brigitte Engerer, Jean Koerner and Christian Ivaldi, he obtained four first prizes (piano, chamber music, piano accompaniment, harmony) at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Paris.
Winner of several international competitions as soloist and chamber musician (Lyon, ARD Munich, Trieste, Beethoven Vienna), Jonas Vitaud performs at prestigious festivals: Roque d'Anthéron, Lille Piano(s) Festival, Piano aux Jacobins, Easter in Deauville, Folle journée de Nantes Tokyo Ekaterinburg and Warsaw, Festival de la Chaise Dieu, Festival Chopin de Bagatelle, Richard Strauss Festival in Germany, Automne Musical de Caserta in Italy, iDans in Istanbul, Summer Festival in Dubrovnik, French May in Hong Kong, Phillips collection in Washington...
He performs throughout Europe, as well as in Russia, Iran, China, Turkey, Japan, the United States...

Jonas Vitaud performs with Orchestres Mulhouse, Cannes, Toulouse, Orchestre Consuelo, Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra, Sinfonia Varsovia, Munich Radio Orchestra, Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra...

He reserves a special place for chamber music, playing with artists such as singers Karine Deshayes, Sumi Hwang and Yumiko Tanimura, cellists Victor Julien- Laferrière, Steven Isserlis and Yan Levionnois, violinists Mi-Sa Yang and Ragnhild Hemsing, pianist Adam Laloum, clarinetists Raphaël Sévère and Olivier Patey, quartets Zaïde and Hermès...

Passionate about contemporary music, Jonas Vitaud has worked with creative masters such as Henri Dutilleux, Thierry Escaich, György Kurtag, Philippe Hersant, Yann Robin.... These encounters testify to his openness to a wide variety of languages and aesthetics. In 2024, Jonas notably premiered Bruno Ducol's Opus 50 Entre regard et silence, with soprano Laura Holm and actor Matthieu Marie at the Festival Messiaen du pays de la Meije.

In 2025, a solo album dedicated to a the piano music of ANTONÍN DVOŘÁK is released by MIRARE.

Jonas Vitaud has recorded a large number of discs. He records solo and has received numerous awards, CHOC Classica and Disc of the Month for June 2021 on Apple Music Classical for his album Beethoven 1802, 5 de Diapason for his Tchaikovsky disc, Coup de cœur de la revue Pianiste and Impressive CD according to The WholeNote (Canada) for his double album Debussy, jeunes années... In 2016, he received the Grand Prix Soliste Instrumental de l'Académie Charles Cros (CHOC Classica, 5 de Diapason) for his recording devoted to Dutilleux and Liszt released by NoMadMusic. In chamber music, an album devoted to Mozart with violinist Mi-Sa Yang and another dedicated to the Russian repertoire with cellist Victor Julien- Laferrière.

will be released in 2019 respectively

Jonas Vitaud has taught at the CNSM de Paris since 2013, where he has been piano professor since 2022.
He is an associate artist at the Fondation Singer-Polignac

Concert program

A. Dvořák (1841-1904)

Scottish dances
Mazurka No. 4 Op. 56
Suite in A major opus 98
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Berceuse and Capriccio
Humoresques opus 101