Editorial.Dear Readers, Our aim, and I hope we are more or less succeeding, is to bring you information about the kind of themes, people and events we consider interesting, excellent and generally worthy of note. But to write about Czech music also means to uncover its painful places, which of course doesn't mean filling our pages with information about bad Czech music, but does mean drawing attention to certain wider historical contexts that have had an unfortunate influence on Czech music in the past and sometimes still do. To pretend that there have been no negative factors in Czech music would not only be unfair, but would deprive de·prive v. 1. To take something from someone or something. 2. To keep from possessing or enjoying something. our readers of an essential part of the picture, and the chance to get a better understanding of those people and phenomena that emerged despite the times and conditions, and became true originals in the face of abnormal and deforming circumstances. Without them Czech music would not be what it is. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Obviously, almost half a century of totalitarian rule could not have failed to make its mark on Czech musical culture. Many possible ways of composing and playing music (and of developing cultural life in public at all) were systematically suppressed or curtailed by the communist regime. The outstanding musicologist mu·si·col·o·gy n. The historical and scientific study of music. mu  si·co·log Vladimir Lebl was one of
the many people to suffer the stifling effects of communist power, but
in one of his texts (which you will find immediately after the portrait
of Lebl written by his colleague of many years, the Years, Thethe seven decades of Eleanor Pargiter’s life. [Br. Lit.: Benét, 1109] See : Time musicologist Jitka Ludvova), he briefly but very persuasively shows how the attempt to restrict and confine Czech music in the name of various ideals goes back far earlier than the rise of the doctrine of socialist realism socialist realism, Soviet artistic and literary doctrine. The role of literature and art in Soviet society was redefined in 1932 when the newly created Union of Soviet Writers proclaimed socialist realism as compulsory literary practice. . And while socialist realist re·al·ist n. 1. One who is inclined to literal truth and pragmatism. 2. A practitioner of artistic or philosophic realism. Noun 1. doctrines have generally been consigned to history, much of what Lebl criticised is still detectable in the atmosphere of Czech music to this day. And what about the "true originals"? Read our interview with composer and musicologist Peter Graham For other persons named Peter Graham, see Peter Graham (disambiguation). Peter Graham (Lanarkshire, Scotland), born 1958, is one of the leading composers for brass band. , who is definitely highly interesting, excellent and worthy of note. The third number of Czech Music will come out in September. Au revoir until then PETR PETR Petroglyph National Monument (US National Park Service) PETR People for the Ethical Treatment of Robots BACKLA EDITOR |
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