Rafael Kubelik was born in Bihori, Czech Republic. His father, Jan Kubelik, is a famous violinist and composer. He studied at the Prague Conservatory of Music from 1928 to 1933, and made his debut conducting the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra the following year. From then until 1936, he often conducted the orchestra to perform his father's six violin concertos and accompanied other violin and orchestral music. From 1936 to 1939, he served as executive conductor of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1942, he was promoted to artistic director. When the Czech Republic took over power in 1948, Kubelik was attending the Edinburgh Music Festival in the UK, and thus left the Czech Republic. The following year, he went to the United States to conduct the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. In 1955, he became music director of Covent Garden Opera House and conducted the New York Philharmonic Orchestra from 1957 to 1958. From 1961 to 1979, he served as chief conductor of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra.