Rudolf Jedlička
Soloist, Baritone
Born in Skalica, Slovakia on 22/1/1920, Rudolf Jedlička is a leading figure of the of Czech song school. He studied under professors Fernando Kapri, Pavel Ludikar and Tino Pattiera. He debuted in 1944 in Dresden, as Marcello in La bohème. Between 1946 and 1949 he worked on a permanent basis with the National Theatre of Prague, and was at the same time regularly invited to sing at the Komische Oper Berlin. In the Czech Republic, he was one of the best performers of Mozart’s lyric works, while he also earned a name in Germany where he performed under the name Rudolf Tanner, being particularly distinguished for singing the title role of Don Giovanni. In the 1950s, he taught at Prague’s Akademie múzických umění (Academy of Performing Arts). In the late part of the same decade, he sang for a while in Vienna, along with compatriot soloists, tenor Ivo Žídek and soprano Libuše Domanínská. He recorded Bedřich Smetana’s opera Dalibor in the German language at an Austrian Broadcasting (ORF) studio. In the 1970s, he sang Czech repertoire throughout Europe. He excelled in roles such as Kalina in Smetana's opera Tajemství, Ivan in Otakar Jeremiáš’ Bratři Karamazovi, and the title roles in Eugene Onegin and Don Giovanni. He has recorded extensively with the Czech label Supraphon, mainly works by Leoš Janáček and Bedřich Smetana, while his opera performances have been preserved also in television recordings. He died in Prague on 11/3/1989. He worked with the GNO twice in the 1960's performing the title role in Don Giovanni.