Detmold Hochschule für Musik

Composer and pianist Miroslav Kroupa, born in Bratislava, Slovakia, initially spent six years there at the conservatory studying piano (with Vladimira Slaviková) and composition (with Juraj Pospisil). After three years at the University of Performing Arts in Bratislava, where he studied composition with Jozef Sixta and piano with Ivan Palovic, Kroupa spent four formative years at the Franz Liszt University in Budapest, Hungary, in the composition studio of József Soproni, attaining his Diplom degree as composer and music theory instructor. Kroupa then came to Germany to complete his studies at the Hochschule für Musik Detmold in the composition studio of Martin Christoph Redel.

Collaborations were quick to follow, particularly as an accompanist for lieder and as répétiteur. Kroupa was soon offered a university position as répétiteur at the Hochschule für Musik Würzburg and the Hochschule für Musik Detmold, where he was awarded a tenured position in 1997.

Kroupa has been invited by the Deutsche Schubert-Gesellschaft as guest docent for vocal masterclasses, most recently with Norman Shettler in Moers and at the Folkwang Hochschule in Essen. Kroupa regularly provides accompaniment for high-ranking competitions, gives numerous concerts across the country with young singers and serves as répétiteur for various courses for vocalists at the request of the Deutscher Tonkünstlerverband.

In the past few years, Kroupa has built up a regular artistic collaboration with alto Gerhild Romberger. The two have given appearances together in Bonn, in Cologne and most recently at the Detmold Summer Academy, where both were guest docents in 2008.

Kroupa was invited to South Korea as guest docent in collaboration with Professor Markus Köhler in the framework of a cooperation between the Hochschule für Musik Detmold and the Chung Ang University of Seoul. There, the two performed Schubert's "Die Schöne Müllerin" cycle in concert on April 20, 2009.

Kroupa has recorded a CD on the Cantate label of vocal works by Frank Martin with singers Volker Arendts and Susanne Martin.

A stipendium from the Deutsche Richard-Wagner-Gesellschaft led Kroupa to Bayreuth in 2003. Since that time, he has been involved in close collaboration with the Richard Wagner Verband of Bielefeld.

Kroupa's compositions have received multiple awards; most recently, Kroupa was awarded first prize at the international "Generace 1989" competition in Ostrava, Czech Republic. Larger vocal-instrumental works by Kroupa have been given their world premieres in Budapest, Istanbul and Bratislava. In 2007, Kroupa was introduced as a composer to a broad public with a performance of his Piano Concerto No. 2 broadcast live via Slovak Radio in Bratislava.

Kroupa maintains a project-based affiliation with Schott Music Publishers in Mainz as editor and is consulted on a consistent basis as language coach for the Slavic languages by the Stadttheater Bielefeld.

Kroupa is married to composer Olga Kroupová.