Peter Balhar (2001) is a drummer and producer from Prague, working between Copenhagen, Berlin, and Antwerp. He is primarily involved in improvised music and performance art.
In December 2024, Peter and singer Milica Hadžić released their debut album “STOP SCARING THE CUSTOMERS”, under the Belgian label Klankhaven Records.
MLŽI is a noise-punk voice & drums duo. Inspired by Serbian folk and the realm of free improvisation, their performances are unpredictable—aggressive and daring, yet often tender and painfully intimate.
In 2023, Peter released his first solo work, HEJNO, which showcases his compositional prowess and features some of the most prominent players of the Czech music scene – Nela Dusová, Martin Debřička, Jan Michálek, and Klára Pudláková.
HEJNO is a five-headed beast; the music is aggressive and tender simultaneously, with moods and colors changing constantly in the flow of songs and improvisation.
Among his other projects is Trio Henya. The group released several albums and has recorded for and been broadcasted on the Czech Radio (2022) and Radio Belgrade (2024). The band was chosen to represent Czechia on the Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival in 2024.
Peter is a member of the Czech improvisation orchestra PMP Ensemble. The ensemble performed music of Anthony Braxton and Roscoe Mitchell in direct collaboration with both of them.
Peter collaborated with performance artists across Europe, including Berlin-based Lorena Izquierdo.
He is a member of the European Music Collective.
Peter obtained his Bachelor of Arts in Jazz Interpretation from the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague in 2023, and his Master of Music in Music Performance from RMC in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 2025.
Among others, he studied with Jim Black, Petter Eldh, Nick Dunston, Christian Lillinger, Ari Hoenig, Kresten Osgood, Lotte Anker, Kasper Tranberg, and Burkhard Beins.