Among recent conducting engagements of Petr Popelka was the performance of La Traviata in April 2017 at Opera house in Constanta (Rumania), in recognition for the Third Prize from the “Black Sea Opera Conducting Competition 2016“. In 2016, he was Conducting Fellow at the Lucerne Festival Academy in the conducting class of Alan Gilbert. He has also benefitted from international masterclasses with Vladimir Kiradjiev, Douglas Bostock, Paavo and Neeme Järvi, and repeatedly participated in conducting masterclasses of the Peter Eötvös Music Foundation in Budapest with special focus in contemporary music.

Petr initially studied double bass at the Prague Conservatory and later at Musikhochschule Freiburg in Germany. He was also dedicated to composition, conducting, and piano through continuous self-study and private lessons. He made his conducting debut in 2008 with the Czech Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra Pardubice followed by guest conducting with the West Bohemian Symphony Orchestra. Since 2010 he is the Assistant Principal Double Bass in the Staatskapelle Dresden, Germany.