Petr Skalka, born in Prague in 1974, he was first introduced to music by his father. He started studying the cello in the Pilsen Music Conservatory, Western Bohemia. Simultaneously he has performed as a soloist with symphony orchestras. He went on to win national awards. His interest in early music and historical performance practices gradually led him toward the study of early music. He left Western Bohemia to study baroque cello and chamber music at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis (SCB, Basel, Switzerland), where he studies under the tutorages of the French cellist Christophe Coin. He graduated in 1999 and received a degree in early music. Now he has been teaching at Schola as an assistant-violoncello specialist for several years.
An accomplished musician, Petr Skalka is privileged to work regularly with a number of renowned chamber ensembles and renowned musicians across Europe in the most famous concert halls. The recordings with ensembles Cafe Zimmerman or Rincontro have been awarded the unique European prizes (Choc de l'année 2002 du Monde de la Musique, Cinq étoiles de Goldberg). Petr Skalka and his family have been living in West Bohemia.
Press:
"played it with such richly satisfying tone and scrupulous intonation, and drawn such rapt and haunting inwardness from the slow movement. Skalka took an inventive and engaging occasional piece and uncovered profound beauty in it"