Exploring the cultural and political meanings of Má vlast in the First Czechoslovak Republic
| Thesis title in Czech: | Zkoumání kulturních a politických významů Mé vlasti v první Československé republice |
|---|---|
| Thesis title in English: | Exploring the cultural and political meanings of Má vlast in the First Czechoslovak Republic |
| Key words: | Symfonická báseň|Bedřich Smetana|Má vlast|Recepce|Kulturní politika|Nacionalismus|Český|Německý|První Československá republika |
| English key words: | Symphonic poem|Bedřich Smetana|Má vlast|My Country|Reception|Cultural politics|Nationalism|Czech|German|First Czechoslovak Republic |
| Academic year of topic announcement: | 2022/2023 |
| Thesis type: | diploma thesis |
| Thesis language: | angličtina |
| Department: | Institute of Musicology (21-UHV) |
| Supervisor: | Mgr. Tereza Havelková, Ph.D. |
| Author: | hidden - assigned and confirmed by the Study Dept. |
| Date of registration: | 21.03.2023 |
| Date of assignment: | 21.03.2023 |
| Administrator's approval: | approved |
| Confirmed by Study dept. on: | 25.04.2023 |
| Date and time of defence: | 01.02.2024 09:30 |
| Date of electronic submission: | 15.01.2024 |
| Date of proceeded defence: | 01.02.2024 |
| Submitted/finalized: | committed by student and finalized |
| Opponents: | Kelly St Pierre, Ph.D. |
| Advisors: | Mgr. Vít Zdrálek, Ph.D. |
| Guidelines |
| Smetana’s Má vlast has long held a unique place in the Czech national culture, and it may be considered as one of the constitutive elements of the Smetana myth in the popular consciousness. In musicological discourse, more than forty years ago, Vladimír Lébl and Jitka Ludvová (1981) called for the “removing of the layers of the Smetana myth” and challenged the prevailing notion of Smetana as the lone genius, as they mapped the contemporary roots of Má vlast. It was only recently that musicologists started to work on uncovering the myth’s layers, among them Linda Maria Koldau (2007) who focused on Má vlast and Kelly St. Pierre (2017) who covered the myth more broadly. The thesis will contribute to this discussion by investigating the meanings of Má vlast in the context of the First Czechoslovak Republic. Specifically, the study will focus on the 1924 Smetana centenary celebrations and the performances of the cycle organized by Czechs and Germans. Drawing on a range of contemporary sources including archival materials, journal and newspaper articles, and monographs, the study will analyze how the identity of the Czechs and Germans in the First Czechoslovak Republic was negotiated, how the myth of Smetana and his music was promoted in public, and how it was consumed and ritualized. The study seeks to contribute to our understanding of the cultural politics in the First Czechoslovak Republic more generally. |
| References |
| Bohlman, Philip V. The Music of European Nationalism: Cultural Identity and Modern History. Santa Barbara, Calif: ABC-CLIO, 2004.
Helfert, Vladimír. O Smetanovi: Soubor Statí a Článků. Edited by Bohumír Štědroň. Praha: Hudební matice, 1950. Koldau, Linda Maria. Die Moldau: Smetanas Zyklus “Mein Vaterland.” Köln: Böhlau, 2007. Lébl, Vladimír, and Jitka Ludvová. “Dobové kořeny a souvislosti Mé vlasti.” Hudební věda 18, no. 2 (1981): 100–141. Locke, Brian S. Opera and Ideology in Prague: Polemics and Practice at the National Theater 1900-1938. Rochester, NY: University of Rochester Press, 2006. Nejedlý, Zdeněk. Bedřich Smetana. Praha: Orbis, 1924. Rehding, Alexander. Music and Monumentality: Commemoration and Wonderment in Nineteenth-Century Germany. Oxford ; New York: Oxford University Press, 2009. Ritter, Rüdiger. “Musik als Element der Legitimierung der tschechischen Nationalkultur in der Zwischenkriegszeit.” Bohemia 47, no. 1 (2007): 52–68. Rychnovsky, Ernst. Smetana. Stuttgart: Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt, 1924. St. Pierre, Kelly. Bedřich Smetana: Myth, Music, and Propaganda. Rochester: University of Rochester Press, 2017. Zich, Otakar. Symfonické básně Smetanovy: Hudebně estetický rozbor. Praha: Hudební matice Umělecké besedy, 1924. |