Searching for a Programme, Searching for an Identity, or the Association and the Struggle between The Saint Wenceslas and Hus-Hussite Traditions in Czech Music of the Second Half of the 19th Century
Searching for a Programme, Searching for an Identity, or the Association and the Struggle between The Saint Wenceslas and Hus-Hussite Traditions in Czech Music of the Second Half of the 19th Century

Summary/Abstract: The text first of all gives a broader comparison of the development of two traditions that significantly influenced Czech society in the 19th century. Political, national and religious influences, together with the development of historical research, were reflected in artistic creation, including music. Both traditions were connected by many features: a place in Czech history, a religious basis, the element of Czech-German coexistence, partly also their incorporation into the interpretation of the Blaník legend, etc. The selection of compositions serves not only to understand the parallel coexistence of both traditions, but it is also beneficial in terms of finding compositions whose authors attempted to merge the two ideological currents. In addition to the compositions themselves, other valuable information on this confrontation is provided by contemporary materials (reviews, memoirs). The text reveals much about the composers’ motivations, the risks of choosing the themes, the reception by audiences, opportunities for performances, competitors’ opinions, etc. One of the main conclusions is the statement that Hus-Hussite compositions quantitatively predominated in the second half of the 19th century and that they were a symbol of the progressive current of Czech political representation. Compositions of a synthesising nature were united by an appeal to reconcile the confessionally, linguistically and politically divided nation, and, in this sense, they are closer to Saint Wenceslas compositions. As a whole, all compositions can then also be understood as a suitable addition to the reconstruction of the subject represented by the question “Wenceslas or Hus/Žižka”.

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