Znojmo Music Festival opens with concerts celebrating city’s 800‑year history

The annual Znojmo Music Festival began on July 19 with a “Concert without Borders” at the South Moravian Museum, featuring the Retz wind and percussion ensemble. The festival runs until July 29, presenting more than 30 concerts across historic venues – the town centre, churches, castles, vineyards and the Podyjí National Park – and marks the 800th anniversary of Znojmo’s founding.

Programming spans classical, jazz, crossover and folk, with highlights such as the Vegetable Orchestra turning fresh vegetables into instruments, an operatic production of “Les Indes galantes”, a family opera about Mendel composed by Miloš Orson Štědroň, and the premiere of violinist Pavel Šporcl’s new CD. Festival patron Šporcl will also perform a recital with Ukrainian‑American pianist Innā Faliks, collaborate with local musicians, and appear with his brother on cello.