• 2024-10-05

To spur on cultural exchange, the National Central Library, the National Museum of the Czech Republic and the Czech Economic, and Cultural Office cohosted an exhibition called “Famous Czech Composers.” The exhibition opened on June 13, 2024 at the National Central Library main library. National Museum of the Czech Republic Directorate Michal Lukeš, Chief Deputy Speaker of the Czech Senate Jiří Drahoš, Czech Economic and Cultural Office Representative David Steinke, Weiwuying- National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts Director of Arts Wen-pin Chien, Taipei Symphony Orchestra Head Pei-yu Kuo were all in attendance. The exhibition went from June 13 to August 14.

National Central Library Director-General Han-ching Wang stated that in recent years NCL has enjoyed many close interactions with the Czech Republic. In addition to the Taiwan Resource Centers for Chinese Studies established at the Czech Academy of Sciences Research Center of the Oriental Institute and at Masaryk University, in recent years NCL has cohosted exhibitions and book fairs with the National Museum of the Czech Republic, as well as Palacký University Olomouc. Both were well received. This year is the 200^th anniversary of the birth of Czech composer Bedřich Smetana (1824-1884). The National Museum of the Czech Republic and NCL also have displays on the life stories of the four main Czech musicians: Antonín Leopold Dvořák (1841-1904), Leoš Janáček (1854-1928), and Bohuslav Martinů (1890-1959). Each is from a different age and demonstrates a unique musical style. Their compositions are filled with cultural freshness, and they give full representation to the Czech Republic on the world stage.

During the opening ceremony, NCL Deputy Director-General Chih-tsung Weng stated that this exhibition is the second overseas stop for the National Museum of the Czech Republic, the first being in New York in 2023. It is also the first stop in Asia. This gives the Taiwanese an opportunity to better understand the unique life experiences of these four composers without having to go to the Czech Republic. At the exhibition, one can find many famous musical pieces that were adapted into Chinese and used in music textbooks in Taiwan. For example, the familiar piece “Going Home” is from the second movement in Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9 “From the New World.” Other examples include a piece by Smetana, the father of Czech music, called “My Fatherland” which enjoys a very wide influence in music. Pieces by Janáček and Martinů are also used as benchmarks for learning and sources of inspiration worldwide.

During Directorate Lukeš’s remarks, he introduced the exhibition and explain that in order to help the world better understand these four amazing musicians, the designers of the exhibition—Sandra Bergmanová and Veronika Vejvodová—did a deep analysis of where they lived, their thought processes, and creative inspiration and experiences. Illustrator Alexei Klyukov’s images were on display throughout the exhibition. The two curators, along with Aleš Březina and Jiří Zahrádka, produced video and audio clips to show historical photos, documents, handwritten musical scores and samples of the most famous compositions of these four composers. The content was amazing, and music lovers would have been amiss to pass this opportunity by.

Apart from illustrations, videos, and audio clips, NCL selected works from its collection that related to the theme, helping attendees to better appreciate the wonderful music and cultural connotations of the Czech Republic through these books.