The Czech music scene before and after the velvet revolution

Photo by Sudhith Xavier

A bit of a historical recap is needed before we start to talk about the difference between the concept of music nowadays and the idea of music that was characteristic of the past as, without the past, there is no present, and in the Czech scene this is as twice as true.

The contact with major centres of musical development occurred at a time when only two or three good-quality foreign albums could be seen on the decks of gramophones since the Czech audience used to have a strong inclination specifically towards local artists.

It hadn't been easy for the innovative idea of contemporary music to reach the isolated Czech audience; rock titles and two state-run publishers could be counted annually on the fingers of one hand.

It was more favourable to record the semi-official scene, which at best served in clubs and some festivals that were coincidentally overlooked by the state and because of that, it wasn't easy to bring the audience to this new concept of music that, at the same time, was spreading out all over the world.

The considerable isolation that art was facing in the present Czech Republic had created a focus where local musicians had come to discover themselves: nonetheless, they approached this revolution, achieving a quite significant result.

While both Anglo-American and European artists actively operating in the 60’s were using English as the 'rock language', in the Czech scene things went quite the opposite. This is due to two main reasons: the political scenario that wouldn't allow any contact with western society and the lyrics of the music which had to be performed exclusively in Czech. This condemned a large number of interesting projects to being forgotten forever.

November 1989 was a cornerstone when it came to culture, music and society. The legendary folk songwriters, together with underground and alternative musicians that were once banned or ostracized by the system, started to gain popularity and hold sell out performances, whereas the so-called “proregime” performers needed to adapt or find a new job.

Bar at Cross Club Prague

After the Velvet Revolution a lot came at once, and not only music: suddenly a new concept of culture had risen.

With time Prague has become one of the most important areas for music development in the world - there is always something interesting going on, regardless the type of music you're interested in - jazz, rock, blues, folk or electro music, and especially if you're interested in the so-called 'avantgarde', thanks to its bright subculture, Prague is now one of the best places to look at.

In issues to come, Oko will keep you appraised about concerts, festivals and artistic events and will bring you exclusive content by conducting personal interviews with various local and international artists.

How music developed after World War One

From September through December, a celebration has been taking place in Prague, a celebration of the end of World War One and the birth of modern music.

After WWI, Europe had witnessed a remarkable growth of democracy along with an impressive expansion of women’s rights. Cinema and radio had turned into powerful tools that society could use to spread out unexplored concepts in all realms, but especially music.

Afro-American immigrants had brought jazz into Europe, the first nightclubs were opened in Paris, London and Berlin, and the mix of street music between European and North American musicians had started. These post-war innovations had become cultural threads throughout the 20th century and are still apparent in musical culture today.

In the last three months, various events in Prague have been taking place such as interactive exhibitions and debates on the contemporary developments that nurture this avant-garde concept of music. The celebration kicked off with a concert including the headliners ‘Groove Armada’ (See Interview) at Cross Club.

There was a lot of discussion on collaboration between American and European street musicians and the social freedom that has risen after WWI, and there were many chances to listen to contemporary music and how it can express its own self as an independent language. We have seen amazing performances from Lake Malawi, the awardwinning young Czech singer Maella, DJ Ben Osborne (UK), Black Montmartre (EU) and many more.

The events were organised by DJ Ben Osborne of Noise of Art, Jaroslav Raušer (head of Institut Moderni Hudby and Move Association) and Merlijn Poolman (Head of Stichting Nederlandse Muziek Export).

Jarda Rauser and his Move Association focus on musical creation, present foreign premieres and co-organises foreign workshops for Czech bands. He does immense work teaching children about producing music and he has a lot in store for the future, so Oko! Magazine will be keeping a close eye on his achievements.