Marek Kozák

Pianist Marek Kozák is a fast-rising figure on the scene in his native Czech Republic and beyond. He specializes in the music of Chopin and other 19th century composers but also has a commitment to contemporary music. Kozák was born in 1993 in Frýdek-Místek in the Czech Republic's Silesia-Moravia region. His musical talents were noticed while he attended the Children's Arts School in nearby Brušperk, and he began to focus on composition and on the organ. Kozák attended the Janáček Conservatory in Ostrava, studying piano with Monika Tugendliebová and organ with Martina Zelová. He went on to the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, studying with Ivan Klánský. He attended piano master classes with leading figures, including Garrick Ohlsson and Murray Perahia, among others. Kozák gained international attention with a semifinalist showing at the Fryderyk Chopin International Piano Competition in Warsaw in 2015. He won second prize at the Prague Spring International Music Competition the following year and took honors at several other important competitions in the late 2010s, including first prize as well as the audience prize at the European Piano Competition in Bremen in 2018 and a finalist showing in 2019 at the Busoni Competition in Bolzano, Italy. In 2018, Kozák recorded his debut album, a recital featuring works by Haydn, Franck, Chopin, Rachmaninov, and Adam Skoumal. That year, Kozák was featured in the Prague Spring Festival's Debut series, and he went on to appear with major Czech orchestras. His debut with the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra in February 2020 featured the little-known Piano Concerto in D minor by Vítězslava Kaprálová. He gave multiple recitals at the Rudolfinium Hall in Prague during the 2022-2023 season, also appearing in Switzerland and Germany. In 2024, Kozák issued the album Forgotten Czech Piano Concertos with the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra, featuring Kaprálová's D minor concerto along with other works. Kozák is on the faculty at the Prague Music High School.
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