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Bop Around the Bloc
From music museums to jazz clubs, Christina Pfeiffer explores Prague through its music.
One of the few cities in Europe that escaped widespread damage during World War II, Prague has cobblestone streets that are some of the most picturesque on the continent, lined with baroque, gothic and renaissance architecture. But if you close your eyes and listen, there's another world to discover.
The city's reputation as a centre of musical excellence was forged when Mozart conducted the premiere of Don Giovanni in the Theatre of the Estates in 1787. Today, with four orchestras, three opera theatres, beautiful baroque churches and historic palaces that serve as concert venues, there's classical music everywhere.
Not all music in Prague is classical, of course. In the 1920s and 1930s, the city was Eastern Europe's jazz capital. And in the 1960s, Czech musicians played the most popular rock in the Eastern bloc. Musical genres from folk to pop and rock are represented by a slew of Czech artists in Prague now and there's a hip jazz scene.
Travellers can immerse themselves in the city's musical heritage at several museums. The Antonin Dvorak museum is a shrine to the Czech Republic's most famous composer and the Bedrich Smetana museum celebrates the country's most patriotic composer. Foremost is the Czech Museum of Music with its interactive displays of the republic's musical history. Highlights include audio systems where you can listen to original recordings performed on venerable instruments and a hammer piano that Mozart himself tinkered on in 1787.
One of the few cities in Europe that escaped widespread damage during World War II, Prague has cobblestone streets that are some of the most picturesque on the continent, lined with baroque, gothic and renaissance architecture. But if you close your eyes and listen, there's another world to discover.
The city's reputation as a centre of musical excellence was forged when Mozart conducted the premiere of Don Giovanni in the Theatre of the Estates in 1787. Today, with four orchestras, three opera theatres, beautiful baroque churches and historic palaces that serve as concert venues, there's classical music everywhere.
Not all music in Prague is classical, of course. In the 1920s and 1930s, the city was Eastern Europe's jazz capital. And in the 1960s, Czech musicians played the most popular rock in the Eastern bloc. Musical genres from folk to pop and rock are represented by a slew of Czech artists in Prague now and there's a hip jazz scene.
Travellers can immerse themselves in the city's musical heritage at several museums. The Antonin Dvorak museum is a shrine to the Czech Republic's most famous composer and the Bedrich Smetana museum celebrates the country's most patriotic composer. Foremost is the Czech Museum of Music with its interactive displays of the republic's musical history. Highlights include audio systems where you can listen to original recordings performed on venerable instruments and a hammer piano that Mozart himself tinkered on in 1787.
For more information contact All About Jazz.
