Award-winning choirmaster and conductor Ivan Sedláček died in Brno this Thursday, he was 91 years old. Sedláček founded and led the children’s and youth choir Kantiléna for decades, with which he performed more than 1,000 concerts. This was confirmed by the spokesperson of the Brno Philharmonic, Kateřina Konečná. Cantilena has been working with the Brno Philharmonic since the 1980s.
Sedláček was born on April 15, 1932 in a teaching family in Zvolen, but grew up in Vyškov and Brno. He received a pedagogical education and studied music privately. In 1956, he founded a singing group in Šlapanice near Brno called the Šlapanicky Children’s Choir, which in the 1960s transformed into the Kantiléna Choir, with which Sedláček won numerous awards and undertook many foreign tours.
Sedláček decided to end his career in the choir, which also included the world-famous mezzo-soprano Magdalena Kožená, at the beginning of the 50th season, i.e. in 2006. He was then replaced by Jakub Klecker, now the artistic director is Michal Jančík.
Together with Kantiléna, Sedláček is a laureate of the City of Brno Prize, the South Moravian Region Prize and the Artis Bohemiae Amicis (Friends of Czech Art) award, which is awarded by the Minister of Culture. Last year, President Miloš Zeman presented him with a medal for services to the state in the field of art.