studied at the Bratislava Conservatory and the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague with Gustav Večerný and Alexander Večtomov. Kanta is a laureate of the Prague Spring (1980) and Beethoven's Hradec (1977) competitions. He worked as concertmaster of the cello group in the Slovak Philharmonic, and later as cello group leader in the Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa in Japan. For many years he has also been teaching at Aichi Prefectural University of Fine Arts. Kanta has performed at national and international music festivals such as Affinis Music Festival, Ishikawa Music Academy, Yamanami International Music Festival, Aomori Music Festival, Karuizawa International Music Festival, Bratislava Music Festival, Kati Popova's Laureate Days in Pleven, and Niagara Music in Canada. He has performed several concerts in the United States (Chicago, Washington, etc.).
As a soloist he has performed with orchestras and conductors such as Zdeněk Košler, Jiří Bělohlávek, Hiroyuki Iwaki, Dmitry Kitajenko. He has collaborated with artists such as Yo-Yo Ma, Mstislav Rostropovich, Peter Schreier, Gidon Kremer, Shlomo Mintz, Günter Pichler, Jean-Pierre Wallez and others. He also performs and records with the ensemble Slovak Piano Trio with Marian Lapšanský and Ewald Danel, as well as with pianist Norbert Heller. Ľudovít Kanta regularly records for NHK. He has recorded 11 albums, including complete Beethoven sonatas and Bach suites. Some of the recordings have been awarded prizes in Japanese and foreign professional journals. His recording of the cello concertos of Joseph Haydn and Luigi Boccherini with the Capella Istropolitana Orchestra and Peter Breiner as conductor and author of the cadenzas (Naxos label) is well known. Kanta is known in Japan as a promoter of efficient and effective control of the instrument with minimal effort. He is a member of the jury of the National Japanese Cello Competition. He currently works as a freelance artist.
Hommâge à Bohdan Warchal
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart undeniably embodies symbols of light, sunshine, life, optimism, and a positive outlook on reality. However, his name is also associated with works with the theme of the night – in addition to the famous A Little Night Music, they also include Serenata Notturna. The talented composer and cellist Luigi Boccherini wrote a total of twelve cello concertos. The Baroque composer uses the entire range of the instrument, which makes his Cello Concerto No. 9 one of the most popular. The popularity of Boccherini's works was so high in the 19th century that in 1895, the German cellist Friedrich Grützmacher decided to adapt the Ninth Concerto to a romantic stylistic aesthetic. Grützmacher's version combines the fourth, fifth and seventh concertos with the ninth, while cadenzas are also added. Jacqueline du Pré, the renowned inspiration in the world of cello art, recorded the concert in this rendition. The solo part of this version will be performed in Bratislava by Ľudovít Kanta, former cello group concert master of the Slovak Philharmonic. He found his second home in Japan, where he was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun in 2023. Leoš Janáček wrote the Suite, his first orchestral piece, even before his studies at the Leipzig Conservatory. The stylistic intention to return to the old baroque suites was followed only in the archaic naming of the six parts.
