Ester Pavlů

Ester Pavlů is one of the most promising Czech dramatic mezzo-sopranos, earning the renown of audiences and critics both at home and abroad. The 2026/27 season will see several returns: she will return to Vilnius as Amneris (Verdi: Aida), and to the State Opera Prague as Kundry and Santuzza (Mascagni: Cavalleria rusticana). As a concert artist, she will appear at the gala concert Christmas in Bratislava and at the Zlatá Praha Festival. In České Budějovice, she will perform Wagner’s Wesendonck Lieder with Petr Altrichter, and with Tomáš Hanus she will take part in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 at the Rudolfinum.

In July 2026, she made her debut in Zaragoza, Spain, as Azucena (Verdi: Il trovatore). “Ester Pavlů, however, was the undisputed star of the evening and possessed the voice of the highest calibre in the entire cast. Her Azucena is extraordinary – she has a rich, full and instantly recognisable voice, supported by exceptionally solid technique and outstanding interpretative intelligence,” wrote the local press. Among the highlights of the previous season were her performance as Jocasta in Stravinsky’s oratorio Oedipus Rex at the Smetana Litomyšl Festival, Verdi’s Requiem in Bratislava with Sascha Goetzel, and Kundry (Wagner: Parsifal) at the State Opera in Prague. In Freiburg, she appeared as the Foreign Princess (Dvořák: Rusalka), while at the National Theatre in Prague she performed as Carmen and the Foreign Princess. She also sang in Verdi’s Requiem with the Rzeszów Philharmonic Orchestra and David Giménez Carreras, as well as with the Prague Symphony Orchestra FOK and Tomáš Brauner. She took part in performances of Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde with the Kraków Philharmonic under the baton of Sascha Goetzel.

Significant operatic achievements of recent seasons include Vlasta (Šárka), Santuzza (Cavalleria rusticana) and Fenena (Nabucco) at the National Theatre and State Opera in Prague; the Ice Queen (Švanda the Bagpiper) at Theater an der Wien and in Graz; Eboli (Don Carlo), Carmen and Amneris (Aida) at the Latvian National Opera in Riga; Angelina (La Cenerentola) at the National Opera in Sofia; the Foreign Princess (Rusalka) at the Slovak National Theatre in Bratislava; and Santuzza (Cavalleria rusticana) in Basel.

On the concert stage, Ester Pavlů has recently collaborated with the Prague Symphony Orchestra (Mahler: Symphony No. 8 and Berlioz: Les nuits d’été), the Czech Radio Symphony Orchestra (concert performance of Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde) and the Slovak Philharmonic (Mahler: Symphony No. 3). She has appeared at opera galas with José Cura in Hungary and with Plácido Domingo at the International Music Festival Český Krumlov. In 2021, she toured the United Kingdom with the Prague Symphony Orchestra (Mahler: Symphony No. 3) and the United States (songs by Czech composers) and appeared in recital at the Kennedy Center in Washington with Slovak pianist Róbert Pechanec.

Ester Pavlů studied at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague with Helena Kaupová. She has participated in masterclasses led by Aprile Millo, Peter Dvorský, Eva Randová, Božidar Nikolov, Gabriela Beňačková and José Cura; more recently, she has been coached by Vladimír Chmelo. Her discography includes Janáček’s The Diary of One Who Disappeared (Zefka), Love Songs by J. B. Foerster, a cycle of Dvořák songs with English pianist Charles Spencer, and a recording of the new opera Oracle by David Buckley with the BBC Concert Orchestra in London.

Season 2026/27
The artist is represented by Alena Kunertová, Nachtigall Artists
tel: +420 602 219 611, e-mail: a.kunertova@nachtigallartists.cz.