Robert Kružík belongs to the youngest generation of Czech conductors. He currently works as the chief conductor of the Zlín Philharmonic (from the 2021/22 season), the permanent conductor of the Janáček Opera NdB (from the 2015/2016 season) and the permanent guest conductor of the Brno Philharmonic (from the 2018/19 season). From the 2025/2026 season, he will become the new chief conductor of the Janáček Opera in Brno. He also worked as a conductor of the Moravian-Silesian National Theater in Ostrava. He is the laureate of the Jiří Bělohlávek prize, which is awarded to young Czech artists under the age of thirty who have achieved extraordinary success in their field and are taking care of the tradition of Czech music at home and abroad.
In March 2023, he made his debut with the Czech Philharmonic in Rudolfinum, Prague. With the Czech Radio Symphony Orchestra he made his debut in 2020 at Prague Spring Festival. Robert collaborated with leading soloists such as violinists Esther Yoo, Josef Špaček, Jan Mráček and Jiří Vodička, cellists Raphael Wallfisch and Andrei Ionițǎ or Grammy winner Sumi Jo, Kateřina Kněžíková, Sung Kiu Park, phenomenal trumpeter Reinhold Friedrich and others. As a conductor, he performed at leading national and international festivals: Prague Spring, Smetanova Litomyšl, St. Wenceslas Music Festival, MHF Leoš Janáček, Festiwal Eufonie in Warsaw.
He cooperates with many symphony orchestras, such as the MDR-Sinfonieorchester, Czech Philharmonic, Sinfonia Varsovia, Brno Philharmonic, PKF – Prague Philharmonia, Prague Symphony Orchestra FOK, Czech Radio SOČR Symphony Orchestra, Slovak Philharmonic, Košice State Philharmonic, Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava , Moravian Philharmonic Olomouc, Pardubice Chamber Philharmonic, South Bohemian Chamber Philharmonic.
At the National Theater in Brno, he staged Rossini's opera Count Ora, Tchaikovsky's Queen of Spades and Eugene Onegin, Smetana's Libuša, which was performed on the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Czechoslovak Republic, Richard Strauss's Pink Cavalier and Verdi's Otello. His wide range of operas includes works by composers Mozart, Smetana, Dvořák, Martinů, Janáček, Donizetti, Rossini, Tchaikovsky, Bizet, Verdi, Puccini, etc.
This Brno native started out as a cellist. He graduated from the Brno Conservatory, where in addition to playing the cello (with Miroslav Zichy) he also devoted himself to conducting (with Stanislav Kummer). He successfully participated in a number of cello competitions, such as the Prague Spring, the Bohuslav Martinů Foundation Competition, the Leoš Janáček International Competition in Brno. He completed a study internship at the Zürcher Hochschule der Künste in Switzerland. He expanded his knowledge and experience at master courses in conducting with Norbert Baxa, Johannes Schlaefli and David Zinman.
