Czech Music – from the Classical Period

The Czech realm became the ’Conservatoire of Europe’ in the second half of the 18th century, and made an important contribution to the development of classical music in the musical centres of Western Europe. Browse our sheet music and scores, and explore all the wonderful Czech music of the Classical Period.

To stay, or not to stay…

In the second half of the 18th century, the Bohemian lands found themselves in a rather unique situation. Thanks to educational reform, the general musicality of the population increased, but at the same time, there was a great pressure to Germanize the Czech-speaking population, and unfortunately, the social and financial conditions had not improved a great deal, so an unusually large number of Czech musicians emigrated.

The Mannheim School

The Mannheim School is an important milestone in the history of classical music. The founder is widely considered to be the Czech composer Jan Václav Stamic, also known as Johann Wenzel Stamitz, while the third generation was represented by Antonín Stamic, or Anton Stamitz. The Mannheim School introduced many new musical elements such as dynamics and new instrumentation, without which, the work of the most important composers such as Mozart and Beethoven would hardly be imaginable.

Emigration to Prussia

A considerable number of musicians went to music-loving Prussia. Almost all of the Benda family emigrated to Prussia in the 18th century, the most well-known Bendas are František Benda or Franz Benda, and Jiří Antonín Benda, also known as Georg Anton Benda.

Emigration to Vienna

As the capital of a multinational monarchy, Vienna has always offered ample employment opportunities for musicians. Therefore, a large percentage of Czech musicians emigrated to Vienna. Important Czech composers in Vienna were Leopold Koželuh, who succeeded Mozart as imperial court composer after his death, and Jan Václav Hugo Voříšek, whose great talent was unfortunately cut short at the young age of 34.

Emigration to Italy

Josef Mysliveček became an Italian citizen. His operas made him so famous, that he was named ’Il divino Boemo’. Alongside 26 operas, his rich work includes numerous oratorios, cantatas, symphonies and chamber music works.

Composers in the Czech Homeland

Despite the difficult conditions, the importance of music to the development of Czech national identity had by no means diminished. The fact that Czech national linguistic and cultural identity was preserved is mainly thanks to the rural cantors, who continued to teach in Czech, despite pressure from the authorities. Important representatives of the Czech cultural scene were Jakub Jan Ryba, František Xaver Dušek" name = ", Josef Ferdinand Norbert Seger amongst others.

More Related Links

• The Classical Period – Sheet Music
• Czech Classical Music – Sheet Music
• Czech Baroque – Sheet Music
• Czech Romantic– Sheet Music