The Most Famous

MUSICIANS from Czechia

This page contains a list of the greatest Czech Musicians. The pantheon dataset contains 3,175 Musicians, 25 of which were born in Czechia. This makes Czechia the birth place of the 20th most number of Musicians behind India, and Finland.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Czech Musicians of all time. This list of famous Czech Musicians is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography's online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Czech Musicians.

1. Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber (1644 - 1704)

With an HPI of 70.59, Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber is the most famous Czech Musician. His biography has been translated into 38 different languages on wikipedia.

Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber correctly Biber von Bibern (bapt. 12 August 1644, Stráž pod Ralskem – 3 May 1704, Salzburg) was a Bohemian-Austrian composer and violinist. Biber worked in Graz and Kroměříž before he illegally left his employer, Prince-Bishop Karl Liechtenstein-Kastelkorn, and settled in Salzburg. He remained there for the rest of his life, publishing much of his music but apparently seldom, if ever, giving concert tours. Biber was among the major composers for the violin in the history of the instrument. His own technique allowed him to easily reach the 6th and 7th positions, employ multiple stops in intricate polyphonic passages, and explore the various possibilities of scordatura tuning. Among other pieces, Biber wrote operas, sacred music and music for chamber ensemble. He also wrote one of the earliest known pieces for solo violin, the monumental passacaglia of the Mystery Sonatas. During Biber's lifetime, his music was known and imitated throughout Europe. In the late 18th century he was named the best violin composer of the 17th century by music historian Charles Burney. In the late 20th century Biber's music, especially the Mystery Sonatas, enjoyed a renaissance. Today, it is widely performed and recorded.

2. Alfred Brendel (1931 - 2025)

With an HPI of 67.79, Alfred Brendel is the 2nd most famous Czech Musician. His biography has been translated into 33 different languages.

Alfred Brendel (5 January 1931 – 17 June 2025) was a Czech-born Austrian classical pianist, poet, author, composer and lecturer, based in London. He is noted for his performances of music by Ludwig van Beethoven, Franz Schubert, and Franz Liszt. He made three recordings of Beethoven's 32 piano sonatas and was the first pianist to record Beethoven's complete works for solo piano.

3. Alice Herz-Sommer (1903 - 2014)

With an HPI of 65.17, Alice Herz-Sommer is the 3rd most famous Czech Musician. Her biography has been translated into 29 different languages.

Alice Herz-Sommer (Hebrew: אליס הרץ-זומר; née Herz; 26 November 1903 – 23 February 2014), was a Czech-born Israeli classical pianist, music teacher, and supercentenarian who survived Theresienstadt concentration camp. She lived for 40 years in Israel, before emigrating to London in 1986, where she resided until her death, and at the age of 110 was the world's oldest known Holocaust survivor until Yisrael Kristal was recognized as such.

4. Jan Kubelík (1880 - 1940)

With an HPI of 64.56, Jan Kubelík is the 4th most famous Czech Musician. His biography has been translated into 26 different languages.

Jan Kubelík (5 July 1880 – 5 December 1940) was a Czech violinist and composer.

5. David Popper (1843 - 1913)

With an HPI of 64.35, David Popper is the 5th most famous Czech Musician. His biography has been translated into 26 different languages.

David Popper (June 18, 1843 – August 7, 1913) was a Bohemian cellist and composer.

6. Wojciech Żywny (1756 - 1842)

With an HPI of 63.24, Wojciech Żywny is the 6th most famous Czech Musician. His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Wojciech Żywny (Czech: Vojtěch Živný; 13 May 1756 – 21 February 1842) was a Czech-born Polish pianist, violinist, teacher and composer. He was Frédéric Chopin's first professional piano teacher.

7. Jan Hammer (b. 1948)

With an HPI of 63.10, Jan Hammer is the 7th most famous Czech Musician. His biography has been translated into 31 different languages.

Jan Hammer (Czech pronunciation: [ˈjan ˈɦamɛr]) (born 17 April 1948) is a Czech-American musician, composer, and record producer. He rose to prominence while playing keyboards with the Mahavishnu Orchestra during the early 1970s, as well as with his film scores for television and film including "Miami Vice Theme" and "Crockett's Theme", from the 1980s television program Miami Vice. He has continued to work as both a musical performer and producer. Hammer has collaborated with some of the era's most influential jazz and rock musicians such as John McLaughlin, Jeff Beck, Billy Cobham, Al Di Meola, Mick Jagger, Carlos Santana, Stanley Clarke, Tommy Bolin, Neal Schon, Steve Lukather, John Abercrombie and Elvin Jones. He has composed and produced at least 14 original motion picture soundtracks, the music for 90 episodes of Miami Vice and 20 episodes of the television series Chancer. His compositions have won him two Grammy Awards.

8. Rudolf Serkin (1903 - 1991)

With an HPI of 62.59, Rudolf Serkin is the 8th most famous Czech Musician. His biography has been translated into 27 different languages.

Rudolf Serkin (28 March 1903 – 8 May 1991) was a Bohemian-born Austrian-American pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest Beethoven interpreters of the 20th century.

9. Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst (1812 - 1865)

With an HPI of 61.17, Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst is the 9th most famous Czech Musician. His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst (8 June 1812 – 8 October 1865) was a Moravian-Jewish violinist, violist and composer. He was seen as the outstanding violinist of his time and one of Niccolò Paganini's greatest successors. He contributed to polyphonic playing and discovered new ways to compose polyphonic violin music. His most famous, and technically difficult, compositions include the sixth of his Polyphonic Studies "Die letzte Rose", and Grand Caprice on Schubert's "Erlkönig".

10. Josef Suk (1929 - 2011)

With an HPI of 61.08, Josef Suk is the 10th most famous Czech Musician. His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Josef Suk (8 August 1929 – 7 July 2011) was a Czech violinist, violist, chamber musician and conductor. In his home country he carried the title of National Artist. Suk's recordings of Dvořák's Violin Concerto, especially those with the Czech Philharmonic and conductors Karel Ančerl and Václav Neumann, are taken as references.

People

Pantheon has 25 people classified as Czech musicians born between 1644 and 1988. Of these 25, 6 (24.00%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Czech musicians include Jan Hammer, Ivan Mládek, and Miroslav Vitouš. The most famous deceased Czech musicians include Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber, Alfred Brendel, and Alice Herz-Sommer. As of April 2024, 25 new Czech musicians have been added to Pantheon including Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber, Alfred Brendel, and Alice Herz-Sommer.