Celebrating Czech Musical Legends: Smetana, Centennials, and Centuries of Melody in 2024

In 2024, the “Smetana 200 Project” will commemorate the 200th anniversary of Bedřich Smetana’s (1824–1884) birth and the 140th anniversary of his passing. Alongside Smetana, the project will celebrate several other significant figures in Czech music history.

Petr Hapka (1944–2014), Emil František Burian (1904–1959), Vilém Blodek (1834–1874), and František Antonín Míča (1694–1774) are among the composers highlightedv. Míča is notably the author of the first opera sung in Czech, with ties to the Questenberk family and Jaroměřice nad Rokytnou castle.

The years ending in four also frame the lives of classical giants like Antonín Dvořák (1841–1904), Leoš Janáček (1854–1928), Josef Suk (1874–1935), and Oskar Nedbal (1874–1930). Avant-garde composer and pianist Ervín Schulhoff (1894–1942), folk song collector Karl Weiss (1862–1944), and conductor Rafael Kubelík (1914–1996) will celebrate their 100th birthdays in 2024, reflecting on their own contributions to the musical world.

Other notable personalities from this era include composer and music director Vlastimil Hála (1924–1985), Jan Rychlík, the composer of the music for the hit films “Lemonade Joe” and “Horse Opera,” and Jiří Šlitr (1924–1969), a composer and actor.

We’ll also recall the achievements of older luminaries like baroque composer and organist Bohuslav Matěj Černohorský (1684–1742), Josef Bohuslav Foerster (1859–1951), and Bohuslav Martinů (1890–1959). *Jazz singer and composer Jana Koubková (1944) will celebrate her 80th birthday.

However, the world of music extends beyond composers and singers who are four years apart. We’ll introduce you to figures like Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791), hosted at Bertramka by Jiří Antonín Benda (1722–1795), and František Xaver Dušek (1731–1799) through “Kudy z nudy.”

Among more modern composers, we’ll present group leader Jaromír Vejvoda (1902–1988), Jaroslav Ježek (1906–1942), and Ilja Hurník (1922–2013), along with the songs of Gustav Mahler (1860–1911).

Source: Kudy z nudy