The comic book by illustrator and artist Renáta Fučíková tells the life story of the greatest Czech musical genius, Antonín Dvořák, in a simple way. This exhibition was created as part of the Year of Czech Music event, when we remember the great Czech musicians.
Antonín Dvořák was born on September 8, 1841 in Nelahozevs to a family of butchers and innkeepers, where he was expected to continue in the trade. Music in their family was considered a pleasant diversion, but it was not considered as a possible option. However, Dvořák fell into the hands of a music teacher in his childhood, who recognized an exceptional talent in him and began to introduce him to the world of melodies and harmonies. In his youth, he lived a fairly modest life, but then he joined Karel Komzák's band as a violist, which later formed the basis of the Opera Orchestra of the Prozatímní divadlo in Prague, where he even played under the direction of Bedřich Smetana. At the time when he started studying the greats of the music industry, he also started writing his own works.
At the age of 32, he married Anna Čermáková, with whom he had a total of nine children, but initially their living situation was very difficult, so he had to earn money by playing the organ or giving private lessons. But later he applied for a scholarship, which was awarded to young talented musicians, and suddenly his popularity and even his fees began to increase. His popularity rose especially in German-speaking countries thanks to the creation of Moravian duets and Slavic dances.
After a family tragedy, when the first three children died, he composed the composition Stabat mater, which made him famous in the world. Gradually, his music began to be promoted abroad, thanks to which he was able to visit England several times and then he even became the director of the National Conservatory of Music in New York, where he composed Symphony No. 9 in E minor, or "From the New World". After returning from the United States, he returned to the Prague Conservatory and then took part in the launch of the Czech Philharmonic.
At the end of his life, he focused on the creation of compositions connected to the realm of fables and fairy tales, the most famous of which are the musical arrangements of texts from the collection Kytice by the author Karel Jaromír Erben (source: WWW.ANTONIN-DVORAK.CZ, AKADEMIE KLASICKÉ HUDBY, Z. Ú.)."Our biography of Antonín Dvořák focused primarily on his life's fate, family life, and search for artistic expression. Because it was a seemingly mundane life, but full of events, friendships, ups and downs, I chose the path of a cultured comic to portray him," said Fučíková, which was professionally assisted by musicologist Jarmila Tauerová and the staff of the Antonín Dvořák Museum (source: Lidovky.cz)
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