Year of Czech Music 2024
Music opens people's hearts and reaches depths where words can no longer go. And it opens Czech hearts perhaps just a bit more - after all, “in music is the life of the Czechs”, as the composer Bedřich Smetana said at the laying of the foundation stone of the National Theatre. In 1924, the centenary of his death was the impetus for establishing the tradition of the Year of Czech Music, whose personalities have been commemorated every ten years since then. This year's Year of Czech Music is exceptional in that its central theme is the celebration of the 200th anniversary of Smetana's birth.
Concerts
The celebrations feature concerts of classical music and other musical genres, representing the great diversity of the contemporary Czech music scene.
Theatre and Opera Performances
Bedřich Smetana
A famous composer with a leading position in Czech national culture, he was also a man with a tragic life story. It’s as if he paid for his musical genius with what any average Czech enjoyed: a peaceful family life, the love of a partner, solid friendships, and good health.
Places Associated with Smetana
Today, Bedřich Smetana is commemorated in numerous places around Prague: the Bedřich Smetana Museum (part of the National Museum); a monument on Novotného lávka; a memorial plaque on the house on the Old Town Square where the composer ran his music institute; a memorial plaque on the building of the Hlahol Association; and an obelisk by Josef Fanta on the composer’s grave in Vyšehrad Cemetery.
Musical Anniversaries in Years Ending With a Four
In the Czech Republic and abroad, the years ending in “4” are considered the “years of Czech music.” The great Czech composers Bedřich Smetana, Antonín Dvořák, Leoš Janáček, and Josef Suk, as well as other musical personalities from times past or not so distant, were born or died in the “4” years.
