Norbert Heller drops a heavy bundle of fresh Mladá Praha posters on a table and immediately notices a problem. "Look," he says with a wry smile, pointing to the first concert listing. It has the day right in English, but wrong in Czech.

Such are the vagaries of trying to run a concert series in Prague, especially when it's of the do-it-yourself variety. Mladá Praha, or Young Prague, is in its 15th year, and has an enviable group of sponsors, including major Japanese companies like Panasonic and, locally, PricewaterhouseCoopers. But, like every musical event put on without state subsidies, its success depends heavily on the efforts of its principal organizers — in this case, Heller, a noted pianist who just finished recording a two-CD set of Beethoven sonatas, and Tomáš Čistecký, a clarinet player with the National Theater and Agon orchestras.

"It's a lot of work," admits Heller. "But it's worth it to help young musicians establish careers. That's the idea of Mladá Praha."

It's also a great opportunity for local audiences to hear promising talent just coming into its prime. Young Czech musicians are featured on many programs in Prague throughout the year, but Mladá Praha casts its net much wider, scouting talent through contacts that Heller and Čistecký have around the world.

"A music professor in Canada will tell us, 'I have someone you should hear,' " Heller explains. "If we can't see the person, they'll send us CDs or tapes. And many of the people recommended to us are competition winners."

The mainstay of the festival is a fresh batch of Japanese performers brought here every year by the estimable Professor Yoshifumi Nakajima from Kunitachi Tokyo University. He always has a choir in tow, along with a handful of solo performers ranging from percussion players to singers.

"The Japanese performers are very good," says Heller. One that comes to mind is Yusuke Kikuchi, a pianist who played a Mozart concerto to a capacity crowd at Wallenstein Palace last year. "He was absolutely professional," recalls Heller. "The training in Japan is at a very high level."

Generally speaking, the Japanese are big fans of Czech music. Every year the State Opera and major Czech orchestras tour Japan, and it's not unusual for Japanese groups to come here for festivals like Prague Spring or even specific concerts. That makes the opportunity to perform in Prague special for the visiting youngsters.

"It means a lot to them to play here," says Heller. "The Rudolfinum in particular is like gold. It's like Americans playing at Carnegie Hall."

This yer, other performers in the 15-concert series will be coming from Hungary, Slovakia, Italy and the Czech Republic. Many nights feature several performers from a single country, but the most interesting mix it up. At the Czech National Bank Hall Aug. 24, the Prague Chamber Symphony Orchestra will back soloists from Japan, Italy and Hungary. On Aug. 31, at the concluding concert at the Rudolfinum, the Japanese choir and Czech and Japanese soloists will perform with the same orchestra, this time under the baton of French conductor Fabien Gabel, a protégé of Kurt Masur.

Eight of the concerts are out of town, in scenic spots like Františkovy Lázně, which offers the performers a variety of venues and audiences, and gives classical music fans in the provinces an opportunity to hear quality music. "The halls in those small towns are always full," says Heller, "because the concerts are something special for people there."

Prague audiences also get a nice selection of venues — in addition to the two mentioned above, Wallenstein Palace and gardens, Sts. Simon and Jude church and Villa Bertramka. "The only problem is that it's in August," says Heller, "and many people are still out of Prague."

But for those of us who are here, that's a bonus. Good seats to the concerts are always available, and there's a relaxed, intimate feel to the performances that you don't get during the regular season.