Biography

Vojtěch Pelka is a countertenor of the young opera generation and a pioneer of the countertenor repertoire in the Czech Republic. He graduated from the Jan Deyl Conservatory in Prague in the class of Prof. Barbora Klozová Velehradská, under whose mentorship he continues his vocal development.

His achievements in international competitions include the 2nd Prize and Audience Award at the Renata Tebaldi International Voice Competition (2025), the Audience Award at the Cesti Competition (2024), and the 2nd Prize with a Special Award for his interpretation of a Mozart aria at the Czech Conservatories Competition (2019).

In the 2025/2026 season, he will present himself in two major operatic roles. He returns to the J. K. Tyl Theatre in Plzeň as the title character in Mysliveček’s Il gran Tamerlano, a production that will also be presented at the Musica Bayreuth festival in the Margravial Opera House (UNESCO). This will be followed by his debut at the National Theatre Brno as Nero in Handel’s Agrippina, accompanied by Collegium 1704 under Václav Luks.

Simultaneously, he maintains a high-profile concert schedule. In December 2025, at the personal invitation of director Laurent Brunner, he made a special guest appearance at the Royal Opera of Versailles (Opéra Royal de Versailles) in the gala concert Les Trois Contre-ténors, accompanied by the Orchestre de l’Opéra Royal.

In February 2026, he will perform at the Rudolfinum in Prague at the Birth of a Star: Tribute to Ema Destinnová gala with the PKF — Prague Philharmonia. That same month, he will make his debut at the Warsaw Chamber Opera in the concert From the Master's Hand, performing Handel’s arias and duets alongside soprano Jaia Nurit Niborski and the period instrument ensemble Musicae Antiquae Collegium Varsoviense. In April, he will join the Karlovy Vary Symphony Orchestra for a performance of Pergolesi's Stabat Mater.

His first major operatic engagement took place in the 2019/20 season at the Silesian Theatre Opava, where he debuted as Cherubino in W. A. Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro. With this role, he successfully introduced himself to the Prague audience at the Estates Theatre during the Opera 2022 Festival. Shortly thereafter, he assumed the title role of Emperor Nero in Monteverdi's L'incoronazione di Poppea at the Josef Kajetán Tyl Theatre in Plzeň, a production with which he appeared at the Margräfliches Opernhaus for the Musica Bayreuth Festival (2023).

He is also a devoted interpreter of contemporary music. In 2021, he created the role of Daphnis in the world premiere of the opera Poklad Arkádie at the Opera Schrattenbach Festival. For his outstanding performance, he was included in the wider nomination for the Thalia Award 2022. His contemporary repertoire also includes a significant collaboration with composer Michael Kocáb; performing works such as Odysseus and Jan Hus with the Prague Symphony Orchestra (FOK) and the Moravian Philharmonic Olomouc, as well as at the Metronom Festival Prague (2024).

In the 2022/2023 season, he undertook several demanding roles. Highlights included the role of Sesto in Mozart's opera La clemenza di Tito at the Moravian Theatre Olomouc, and the lead role of Morasto in Vivaldi's opera La fida ninfa, performed at the prestigious Innsbrucker Festwochen der Alten Musik (AT).

he 2023/2024 season brought a significant collaboration with the Czech ensemble Musica Florea, under the direction of Marek Štryncl. With the ensemble, he performs the roles of Jupiter and Tiempo in Sebastián Durón's Spanish zarzuela La guerra de los gigantes, which was presented to audiences in both Poland and the Czech Republic. Furthermore, he frequently interprets the soprano solo in Pergolesi's Stabat Mater with the same ensemble; a work he also performed in the 2022/2023 season with the Slovak Sinfonietta Žilina.

Beginning with the 2024/2025 season, he is a guest soloist at the South Bohemian Theatre in České Budějovice, where he created the title role in the world premiere of the contemporary opera Pinocchio by T. Hanzlík and V. Zouhar. Other highlights of the season include the title role in G. F. Handel’s Alessandro Severo, performed with Collegium Marianum at the Festival Krumlov 2025 in the prestigious Castle Baroque Theatre, and the role of Prenesto in Bononcini's Il trionfo di Camilla, marking a continued collaboration with Musica Florea.

He has successfully introduced his concert and operatic repertoire to international audiences, performing in France, Germany, Austria, China, Poland, Slovakia, and Switzerland. He collaborates with renowned ensembles and orchestras, including the Guiyang Symphony Orchestra, Prague Symphony Orchestra (FOK), Pilsen Philharmonic, Barocco sempre giovane, Musica Florea, Collegium Marianum, Ensemble Damian, and the Orchestra of the Moravian Theatre Olomouc. He regularly holds solo recitals focusing on Baroque, Classical, and Early Romantic repertoire, and appears at prestigious festivals such as the Innsbrucker Festwochen der Alten Musik, Musica Bayreuth, Festival Krumlov, Opera Schrattenbach, and Theatrum Kuks.

His discography includes a 2019 CPO collaboration featuring arias by I. Holzbauer and J. A. Koželuh, as well as the 2023 recording of the contemporary opera Poklad Arkádie with Ensemble Damian. Most recently, a recording of Vivaldi’s opera La fida ninfa was released by CPO, featuring him in the role of Morasto under the baton of Chiara Cattani and accompanied by Barockorchester:Jung.