Petra Polackova and Hao Yang in Concert

Petra Poláčková is a musician’s musician, who began studying guitar at age six in Rožnov pod Radhoštěm, Czech Republic with teachers such as Bohuslav Faltus, Miroslava Pavelková, and Zdeněk Dvořák. She graduated from the Pardubice Conservatory in 2010 withPetr Saidl and earned both her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees with distinction at the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Graz under Paolo Pegoraro. Between 2018 and 2024, she led a guitar class at Graz’s Franz Schubert Music School and Johann-Joseph-Fux Conservatory.Specializing in both the Romantic guitar and early music, Petra has attended master classes with internationally acclaimed artists and received a Merit Diploma from the Chigiana Academy of Siena. An acclaimed performer and educator,she has appeared at prestigious festivals worldwide and, since 2010, co-organizes the Guitar Festival Mikulov. In June 2020, she released her debut CD “WEISS,” featuring music by Sylvius Leopold Weiss recorded on a 9-string romantic guitar. She currently teaches at the Franz Liszt Hochschule Weimar (Germany) and the Royal Academy of Music Aarhus/Aalborg (Denmark).

Hao Yang is a concert classical guitarist and Astral Artist from China, performing solo and chamber music. She has appeared as a soloist with the Chusachsische Philharmonie in Germany and as a guest at the Cleveland, Panama, and Beijing International Guitar Festivals. Yang has performed at major venues including Carnegie Hall, Kimmel Center, Miller Theatre at Columbia University, and Princeton Sound Kitchen.As a chamber musician, she made her Carnegie Hall debut by premiering Paul Lansky’s guitar duo “Talking Guitars” with JIJI, collaborated on the PCMS series, and appeared at the Concordia Chamber Festival. Yang has also recorded chamber works with Grammy-winning Bridge Records Inc.In 2021, she won the Astral Artists’ National Audition. Her accolades include top prizes at the Koblenz International Guitar Competition (Hubert Käppel 2024), the 54th Markneukirchen International Instrumental Competition, second prize at the GFA International Concert Artist Competition, and first prizes at the GFA InternationalYouth, CSU International, and Andres Segovia 7th International Guitar Competitions, as well as the Clifton Foundation’s Emerging Artists Award. Yang holds a BM from the Curtis Institute, an MM from Lamont School of Music, and is pursuing an Artist Diploma at Yale.

Linehan Concert Hall is easy to visit, with plenty of free parking. Please visit here for directions and parking information.

BCGS programs are supported by The Maryland State Arts Council, The Citizens of Baltimore County, Creative Forces Community Engagement Grants, a part of the National Endowment for the Arts’ Creative Forces® initiative, in partnership with Mid-America Arts Alliance, the Augustine Foundation, the Cape Foundation, the D’Addario Foundation, the Savarez Foundation, William G. Baker, Jr. Memorial Fund, creator of the Baker Artist Portfolios, www.BakerArtist.org, and individual donors and members. Thank you.