On the Anniversary of the Occupation, Czech Music by the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra Touched Visitors at Expo
On 21 August, the very anniversary of the occupation, the organizers of Expo in Osaka scheduled a performance by the Chamber Soloists of the PRSO.
In doing so, they commemorated a dark day in our history, which over the past three and a half years has gained strong symbolic significance in light of events in Ukraine.
The PRSO soloists performed in the National Hall, a venue the organizers use for cultural events outside the individual pavilions. With the auditorium filled to capacity twice, the audience was able to enjoy music by Dvořák and Janáček, appropriately introduced by Mozart’s Divertimento.
Following a welcome address by the Czech representatives, which focused primarily on the circumstances of the 1968 occupation of Czechoslovakia, the program lasted nearly an hour – and the PRSO soloists even returned for two encores. It was hardly surprising: the Japanese audience, as always, listened with great enthusiasm and rewarded the musicians with a standing ovation. Dvořák’s famous Largo from the New World Symphony even moved some Japanese listeners to tears, while for us Czechs it brought chills down the spine.
In addition to the two Thursday concerts in the National Hall, the PRSO soloists have also performed, and will continue to perform for several days, directly in the Czech Pavilion. You can watch a video recording of the second concert here: https://www.youtube.com/live/Oy4OGyokXOI
Jakub Čížek
Director of the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra
