Jan Deyl Conservatory – Jan Drtina Concert Hall

The Jan Drtina Concert Hall brings public and student performances into the painted Baroque interiors of the Jan Deyl Conservatory in Prague’s Lesser Town.

The hall stands in historic Straka Palace at Maltézské náměstí. It hosts conservatory concerts, masterclasses and projects and is also used for public performances.

From a Renaissance residence to a Baroque palace

The building began as a Renaissance palace with a loggia around the turn of the 17th century. It gained its present Baroque form in the mid-1600s and takes its name from the Straka family of Nedabylice.

A concert hall recovered

In the 19th century, the great hall was divided into three rooms, its ceiling lowered and its murals covered. Later threatened with demolition, the palace was preserved and restored. Removing the partitions returned the hall to its original scale and revealed its decoration.

Illusionistic murals and a living music school

The allegorical, illusionistic murals form a unified ensemble with the architecture. Their precise date and authorship remain uncertain, although much is associated with Swiss painter Jan Rudolf Byss’s Prague period of 1689–1713. The school has occupied the palace since 1910, and the hall has borne pianist and former director Jan Drtina’s name since 2012.