Štěpán Rak

Štěpán Rak was born in Prague, Czech republic in 1945. At first he intended to become a painter and studied art but the call of music proved stronger. He studied the guitar with Štěpán Urban at Prague Conservatoire (1965-1970) and took composition lessons with Jiří Dvořáček. In 1975 he went to Finland where he took up a teaching post for five years before returning to Prague. His first recitals in the west established his reputation as both a virtuoso performer and a composer of immense originality and power