Biography
Pianist and conductor David Štech is the assistant conductor of Sarasota Opera, St. Petersburg Opera, associate conductor of dell'Arte Opera Ensemble, resident conductor of the Composers' Collective of New York, and Organist/Choirmaster at St. John's Episcopal Church in Passaic, NJ. His conducting career began as a conducting fellow with the American Symphony Orchestra League and the Chicago Civic Orchestra in 2002. He was immediately invited Tanglewood where he was awarded the prestigious Leonard Bernstein Conducting Fellowship. There he worked closely with Kurt Masur, Christoph von Dohnányi and Robert Spano. He is also the artistic director of the New York Conducting Institute, where he works with conductors just entering the field.
With a career spanning four continents, Štech has conducted The Florida Orchestra, the Bohuslav Martinů Philharmonic, the New Symphony Orchestra (Bulgaria), St. Petersburg Opera, Ash Lawn Opera, The Gwinnett Symphony Chamber Orchestra, Opera in Williamsburg, Opera in the Ozarks, Chicago Choral Artists, Chicago Symphony Chorus, American Opera Group, New York Composers' Collective, the Astoria Symphony Orchestra, Orquestra Sinfónica Uncuyo (Argentina), Amore Opera, North Shore Chamber Orchestra, the Sherwood Symphony, the Plainfield Symphony of New Jersey, and orchestras at the nation's finest conservatories, including Northwestern University, University of Indiana, Manhattan School of Music, University of Michigan, DePaul University and others. His Carnegie Hall debut was conducting Puccini's Madama Butterfly in 2013, and he made his Lincoln Center debut conducting Wagner's Die Walküre with New York Lyric Opera.
He also studied with Pierre Boulez, Sir Roger Norrington, Hans Graf, Gustav Meier, and Otto Werner-Müller, Paul Nadler, Kirk Trevor, Donald Schleicher and Victor Yampolsky, and is an alumnus of the Pierre Monteux School. As a vocal coach, he has worked at the Opera Theater of Lucca (Italy), the Academy of Performing Arts (Hong Kong) and Manhattan School of Music, where he's served on the faculty since 2009.
With a career spanning four continents, Štech has conducted The Florida Orchestra, the Bohuslav Martinů Philharmonic, the New Symphony Orchestra (Bulgaria), St. Petersburg Opera, Ash Lawn Opera, The Gwinnett Symphony Chamber Orchestra, Opera in Williamsburg, Opera in the Ozarks, Chicago Choral Artists, Chicago Symphony Chorus, American Opera Group, New York Composers' Collective, the Astoria Symphony Orchestra, Orquestra Sinfónica Uncuyo (Argentina), Amore Opera, North Shore Chamber Orchestra, the Sherwood Symphony, the Plainfield Symphony of New Jersey, and orchestras at the nation's finest conservatories, including Northwestern University, University of Indiana, Manhattan School of Music, University of Michigan, DePaul University and others. His Carnegie Hall debut was conducting Puccini's Madama Butterfly in 2013, and he made his Lincoln Center debut conducting Wagner's Die Walküre with New York Lyric Opera.
He also studied with Pierre Boulez, Sir Roger Norrington, Hans Graf, Gustav Meier, and Otto Werner-Müller, Paul Nadler, Kirk Trevor, Donald Schleicher and Victor Yampolsky, and is an alumnus of the Pierre Monteux School. As a vocal coach, he has worked at the Opera Theater of Lucca (Italy), the Academy of Performing Arts (Hong Kong) and Manhattan School of Music, where he's served on the faculty since 2009.
Press Reviews
“The opera was...led with grace by David Štech” — Opera News
“Under the direction of David Štech, the orchestra created some lovely textures, and enchanted with their impish gestures in the opera’s [Leos Janáček’s The Cunning Little Vixen] many interludes. The energetic spirit of the work was always at the fore, from the glee of its playful moments to the blaring power of its darker ones. ” - New York Classical Review
“He will do extraordinary things in Astoria, and under his leadership the orchestra will grow and do great work.” - Queens Tribune
"The orchestra was at ease with the demands of Mozart's score ably led by David Stech. Pacing in the accompanied recitatives was especially clean" - Oak Park Journal
"David Stech, the music director, accompanied the singers well." - BWW Reviews
“Under the direction of David Štech, the orchestra created some lovely textures, and enchanted with their impish gestures in the opera’s [Leos Janáček’s The Cunning Little Vixen] many interludes. The energetic spirit of the work was always at the fore, from the glee of its playful moments to the blaring power of its darker ones. ” - New York Classical Review
“He will do extraordinary things in Astoria, and under his leadership the orchestra will grow and do great work.” - Queens Tribune
"The orchestra was at ease with the demands of Mozart's score ably led by David Stech. Pacing in the accompanied recitatives was especially clean" - Oak Park Journal
"David Stech, the music director, accompanied the singers well." - BWW Reviews