Collegium 1704 conductor and artistic director Václav Luks received the Order of Arts and Letters (Ordre des Arts et des Lettres) with the rank of Knight from Ambassador Alexis Dutertre during a ceremony at the French Embassy in Prague on 21 June 2022. The Order is conferred by the French Minister for Culture for distinguished services in the field of culture, arts, and literature.

Václav Luks has a number of unique achievements in the interpretation of French musical repertoire. For instance, with Collegium 1704, he made the second-ever complete recording of Rameau’s opera Les Boréades, which won the prestigious awards Trophées 2021 and Edison 2021 for the Opera Recording of the Year.

In the past, the Order of Arts and Letters has been conferred on a number of prominent personalities who connect Czech and French culture, such as mezzo-soprano Magdalena Kožená, composer Petr Eben, director Jiří Menzel, and former president and playwright Václav Havel. More recent recipients include photographer Libuše Jarcovjáková, director Andrea Sedláčková, and illustrator Lucie Lomová.