Petr Skopek was born in Prague, Czech Republic, where he began his musical studies at the National School of Music at the age of six. He attended the Academy of Fine Arts in Frederick, MD, and received his Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance degree from the University of North Texas, College of Music. He received his Maryland state professional teaching certificate in 2006.
Mr. Skopek is currently a member of The Maryland Symphony Orchestra, Two Rivers Chamber Orchestra, Two Rivers String Quartet, Gettysburg Chamber Orchestra, and Shippensburg Festival Orchestra. In the past, Mr. Skopek has performed with orchestras and chamber groups in Texas, Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Washington DC, including East Texas Symphony, Richardson Symphony, Amarillo Symphony, Alexandria Symphony, Concert Artists of Baltimore, National Philharmonic, Washington Concert Opera, and The Choral Arts Society of Washington DC.
From 1996-2002, Mr. Skopek worked as a private lesson violin and viola instructor for the Texas independent school districts of Plano, Richardson, and Lewisville. From 2002 to 2022, he served as a band and orchestra director in the Frederick County (MD) Public Schools system, where his orchestras, bands, and jazz bands consistently received awards, superior ratings, and recognition at county and state music festivals and adjudications. In 2023, Mr. Skopek became the orchestra director at Barbara Ingram School for the Arts, an arts magnet high school in Washington County, Maryland. Mr. Skopek also serves as a clinician, conductor, adjudicator, and string coach. He has worked with many festival ensembles in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia, as well as youth orchestras including the Frederick Regional Youth Orchestra, Academy of St. Cecilia, the Maryland Symphony Youth Orchestra, and the Shepherd University Preparatory Orchestra.
