The program will feature “Dumka and Furiant, op. 12” and “Poetic Tone Pictures, op. 85” by Dvorák; “Song of a Winter Night” by Vítezslav Novák; “Sonata 1.X.1905” by Leoš Janácek; and “Czech Dances” by Bedrich Smetana.

Kvapil hails from Brno, Moravia. Throughout his distinguished career, Kvapil has been commended by music critics for his “sterling service for the cause of Czech piano music,” and praised as an “unrivaled master,” as well as a “magician at the keyboard.”

Kvapil has performed in major concert halls in about 50 countries in Europe, North America and Asia, including the Royal Albert Hall and the Barbican Centre in London, Carnegie Recital Hall in New York, the Théatre des Champs Elysées in Paris, the Concert Hall of the Seoul Arts Centre in South Korea and the Henry Crown Symphony Hall in Jerusalem.

Since 1977, he has given master classes and lecture recitals worldwide in such distinguished music schools as the Juillard School of Music in New York, the Royal Academy of Music and the Guildhall School of Music in London, the Royal College of Music in Cardiff and the Conservatoire National Superieur in Paris.

Kvapil frequently serves on juries of important piano competitions, including the Schumann Competition in Zwickau, the Gina Bachauer Competition in Salt Lake City, the competition of the American Pianists Association in Indianapolis and the Isidor Bajic Piano Memorial in Novi Sad.

In 1967-1969, Kvapil recorded Dvorák’s complete piano works, the first such recording in history, and the complete piano works by Leoš Janácek. In 1975, he made a recording of the complete piano works by Jan Václav Hugo Voríšek. A second complete recording of Janácek’s piano works followed in 1989, and in 1990, the first two volumes of Bohuslav Martinu’s complete piano works were released. Kvapil has recorded dozens of other records and CDs of works by Bedrich Smetana, Zdenek Fibich, Josef Suk, Franz Liszt, Johannes Brahms, Paul Hindemith, Franz Schubert, Frederic Chopin and others.

In 1974, Kvapil founded the South Bohemia Music Festival, which has been taking place annually since then. In 1999, he founded the International Dvorák Society, which has organized a number of concert series, including the Vysocina Music Festival, Afternoon Concerts for Seniors in Prague 2 and the American Spring Festival. In 2002, the French Ministry of Culture awarded Kvapil the title of “Chevalier dans l´Ordre des Arts et des Lettres.”

On Friday, Sept. 30, at 8 p.m., FSU will present the second program, for duo piano, that will feature Dr. Joan DeVee Dixon, a professor of music at FSU, and Alice Fiedlerová at the Lyric Theatre in downtown Frostburg. Both concerts are free and open to the public. For more information, contact Dixon at 301-687-4115.

The Mutual Inspirations Festival extends from September through October 2011 and forms a unique bridge between Czech and American cultures. In all, the two-month event will feature more than 500 musicians from the U.S. and the Czech Republic. For a full lineup of events, visit www.mutualinspirations.org.

Situated in the mountains of Allegany County, Frostburg State University is one of the 12 institutions of the University System of Maryland. FSU is a comprehensive, residential regional university and serves as an educational and cultural center for Western Maryland. For more information, visit www.frostburg.edu or facebook.com/frostburgstateuniversity.