He studied musicology at the Charles University in Prague with Jarmila Gabrielová (1993-99) and composition at the Prague Academy of Performing Arts with Milan Slavický (1998-2003). Study trips took him to the Humboldt University in Berlin 1995-96 and the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Paris in 2001. He had participated in exchange programmes and composition courses with Ivan Fedele in 2002, Philippe Manoury in 2004, and at IRCAM Paris.

He received the Gideon Klein Award in 2001 as well as the Leoš Janácek Anniversary Prize in 2004 and Ernst von Siemens Composers' Prize in 2009.

In 2005 his short chamber opera "Wall" after Jonathan Safran Foer was premiered at the Berlin State Opera.
He was "Composer for Heidelberg" at the Theater und Philharmonisches Orchester Heidelberg in 2006-07.
For 2009-2010, he is awarded by a fellowship to write an opera for Aldeburgh Music.

His compositions have been commissioned, premiered or performed by leading interpreters, such as the Ensemble Modern with Matthias Pintscher, Ensemble Intercontemporain with Claron McFadden and David Robertson, BBC Philharmonic with Cornelius Meister, Ostravská Banda with Peter Rundel and Petr Kotík, Arditti Quartet, Quatuor Diotima, members of Deutsches Symphonie Orchester Berlin, Bayerisches Staatsorchester, Prague Philharmonia (Prague Modern), Annsi Karttunen with Magnus Lindberg, Dagmar Pecková with Eric Nielsen, Cécile Boiffin, Emanuele Torquati and at festivals including Prague Spring, Musica Strasbourg, Ultraschall Berlin, Avanti! Summer Sounds Porvoo, Klangspuren Schwaz, Ostrava New Music Days, Contempuls and others.