Slovakia

Germans call the Slovak capital Preßburg, for Hungarians it is Poszonyi.

The town can pride in a glorious musical past. After Buda was taken over by the Turks (1536), the town became the Hungarian capital until 1783 and from 1563 to 1830 it was the coronation town of 19 Hungarian kings and queens, with the customary music-drenched ceremonies. Also in the succeeding ages the town maintained its musical importance.

The town was the birthplace of Hans Neusiedler (1508-63); he and his sons Melchior and Conrad became leading figures in 16^th century lute music.

In the cathedral of St. Martin, the Viennese court musicians often appeared, especially adding lustre to the coronation ceremonies. Also worth mentioning: the marriage in 1808 of Mozart’s widow Constanze with the Danish diplomat Nissen, fled from Vienna under Napoleon, and the performance of Liszt’s Krönungsmesse in 1884 in presence of the old composer.

In the little park opposite the church there is a Liszt monument by Victor Tilgner, memorizing that event; Hosanna can be read in the fence. Liszt visited the town fifteen times.

The Reduta, built in 1913-19, is the main concert hall and the home of the Slovak PO.

The Slovak National Theatre for opera and ballet was opened in 1886 after a fire which destroyed its forerunner from 1776. It is called ‘old building’ since in 2007 a new one was opened (see below), but is still in operation.

It is said that Haydn performed in 1767 his opera La Canterina in the garden of this beautiful archbishop’s palace. In any case, in the Hall of mirrors concerts sound from 1780 until today.

The palace belonged to the family which Haydn worked for and he appeared here with his orchestra. Possibly his La Canterina was performed here in 1768 instead of in the archbishop’s palace in 1767.

Haydn must have visited this palace of the Apponyi family, who admired his music; the string quartets op. 71 and 74 where dedicated to them.

The palace is now a museum of 18^th and 19^th century furniture and style.

This magnificent palace was built by Anton Grassalkovich in the 1760s. Haydn and his orchestra played here at a the wedding ball of princess Christina in 1773. Haydn plaque.

The palace was a Dom Pionierov (Pioneers’ house) in communist times, now it is the residence of the president of the republic.

In the park behind the palace there is a monument for Joh. Nepomuk Hummel (Tilgner 1881).

The piano virtuoso and composer Joh. Nepomuk Hummel was born here in 1778 and lived here until 1786, when he became a pupil of Mozart. After a glorious career he ended as Musikdirektor  in Weimar, where he died in 1837. His birthplace is a interesting music museum. At the ground floor is the tourist information centre.

The Russian piano virtuoso and composer Anton Rubinstein (1829-94) lived in this house of a member of the Esterházy family in the summer of 1847. He gave successful recitals, played together with the talented Euphemia Esterházy and composed his Piano concerto in d-minor.

In 1858 and 1885 he returned to Bratislava, the last time for a benefit concert on behalf of the erection of the Hummel monument, in which Liszt participated too. The profit was 1138 Gulden.

Beethoven gave a recital here on 23.XI.1796. Babette Keglevics (after her marriage countess Odescalchi) was a pupil and friend of the composer; the ‘first’ (= second) piano concerto op. 15 and a couple of solo piano works were dedicated to her.

In December 1762 Leopold Mozart and his six year old son most likely appeared here, good enough for a plaque.

Heinrich Marschner (1795-1861) worked here as music teacher from 1817 to 1821 and composed some operas, which however were not as successful as the later Der Vampyr and Hans Heiling.

In 1820 the nine year old Liszt appeared here for the first time in Bratislava and the enthusiastic aristocracy began to support him financially. The strong ties with the town resulted in fourteen more visits during his lifetime.

The palace is now a library; musicalia are in the Liszt pavilion in the courtyard.

The gothic building of the Academia Istropolitana – Bratislava’s first university, which only existed from 1465 to 1490 – houses today the headquarters (‘Rector’s office’) of the High School of Musical Arts (VŠMU), established in 1949. The composers Alex. Moyzes and Ján Cikker taught and the great singer Edita Gruberová studied at this institute. The three faculties ─ Theatre, Film & TV, Music & Dance (incl. musicology) ─ occupy other buildings; the latter is at Zochova ulica 1.

Béla Bartók lived here with his mother from 1894 until 1899, busy with study at the grammar school, participation in the musical life of the town and musical lessons; one of his teachers was Laszlo Erkel (son of Ferenc Erkel, the ‘father of the Hungarian opera’).

At the gymnasium Bartók studied from 1894 and he met Ernö Dohnányi, four years his senior, who became his first great example. After his final exam in 1899 Bartók went to Budapest, as Dohnányi had done.

Dohnányi was born in 1877 in the same street, at nr. 10, and lived there until 1894.

A plaque at the Ministry of Culture, formerly the TV building, remembers the composer Franz Schmidt (1974-1939), whose birthplace once stood on this spot. Schmidt ─ for the Nazis an ‘Aryan alternative’ for Mahler ─ is especially known by his Apocalypse oratorio Das Buch mit sieben Siegeln (1937).

The composer Ján Cikker (1911-89) lived here from 1967 until his death. The house was made accessible to the public in 2004 and displays manuscripts, documents and personal belongings. Cikker is one of the leading composers of 20^th century Slovakia, mixing modernist features with influences from the national folk music.

The castle, towering above the city, houses some museums and a concert hall. In the bastion Luginsland at the northern side is a music museum with an archive, a study centre and a collection of instruments.

The conservatory is, next to the Academy, an institute for professional musical training. It was established in 1919 as a music school but became a state conservatory in 1946.

Nová Scéna is the theatre for operettas and musicals, with c. 600 seats. It was built in 1929-30 as a trade centre but altered into a theatre in 1946.

The ‘new building’ of the Slovak National Theatre outside the city centre is the modern counterpart of the ‘old building’ (nr. 03). Its design and construction took over twenty years (1986-2007).

On the cemetery of St. Martin are the graves of the composers Ján Cikker, +1989 (> above) and Alexander Moyzes (1906-84); he was, with Suchoň and Cikker, one of the leading 20^th century composers of Slovakia. He wrote mainly orchestral music with a nationalist character, incl. twelve symphonies.

Also Alexander Dubček (1921-92) was buried here, the enlightened Czechoslovak leader who irritated the Soviets, resulting in their brutal assumption of power in 1968. 

Eugen Suchoň , was born in Pezinok in 1908 and lived here until 1931. He is internationally the best known Slovak composer. His oeuvre covers all genres; important are the two operas, Krútňava (1940s) and Svätopluk (1950s). www.suchon.info

His birthplace is not extant, but in accordance with his will he was buried in the town (+1993 in Bratislava).

Eugen Suchoň lived in this Spa in the 1940s; here he began the folkloristic opera Krútňava and added greatly to the local musical life.

In 2006 this opera was performed in the Dom Umenia (House of the Arts). In the same year he became a honorary citizen of the town and a commemorative tablet by Roman Hrčka was unveiled.

Photo by M.Hlanka (wiki)

Trnava is the birthplace of Mikulaš Schneider-Trnavský (1881-1958). He worked mainly as a church musician (from 1909 regens chori at Trnava cathedral). The Jednotý Katolíčky Spevník (the standard R.K. hymnbook, 1937) contains five hundred songs, the half of which was composed by him. In 1996 there was an exhibition about him, but it seems to have been closed since 2006.

Trnava was called Türnau by the Germans and Nagyszombat by the Hungarians. Also born in Trnava/Türnau, in 1767, was Wenzel Müller, the composer of light operas which were very popular in Vienna around 1800. His opera Die Schwestern von Prag contains the aria Ich bin der Schneider Kakadu, on which Beethoven wrote his Variations op. 121a for piano trio. Müller died in Baden bei Wien in 1835.

During the years 1892-1910 Zoltán Kodály lived in Trnava/Nagyszombat, where he attended the archiepiscopal grammar school. He is honoured with a plaque.

The castle of Dolná Krupá was the summer residence of the Brunsvik family. As a part of the Slovak National Museum, it displays a collection of instruments and exhibits about the Brunsviks. The exhibition was renovated several times, lastly in 2003. Beethoven was friendly with the family, especially with the children of the house: Therèse, Josephine and Franz. Several compositions were dedicated to them. Josephine is said – with good, but not decisive arguments ─ to have been the composer’s unsterbliche Geliebte (immortal beloved).

The composer visited Dolná Krupá more than once, perhaps he composed in the present ‘Beethoven pavilion’ next to the castle, but for sure not the Mondschein Sonata, as it is claimed here.

Zoltán Kodály spent a great part of his childhood (1884-92) in Galanta, where his father was the station master. Also the adult folk music researcher visited the town, the name of which he made worldwide public with his brilliant Dances of Galánta (1933). A plaque at the station and a monument in the castle park show the gratitude of the inhabitants.

The operetta composer Franz Lehár was born here in 1870, but his birthplace at Gustav Stejner street is not extant. A monument was erected in a park named after him.

Franz Schubert spent the summer of 1818 here as the music teacher of the girls Marie and Caroline Esterházy and lived in their father’s pleasant summer residence, which still waits for a thorough restoration. He returned in 1824, then living in an annex lodge that is better preserved and equipped with a Schubert exhibition, including the Gottlieb Hafner fortepiano. After the Schubert monument in the park was stolen in the 1990s, a bust was placed in front of the lodge. Some of his four-hand piano compositions were composed in Zseliz and the famous f- minor Fantasy (1828) was dedicated to Caroline.

The mortal remains of the sisters rest in the family mausoleum at the local cemetery (Hrobka Esterházyi, Cintorin, ulica SNP 67/50).

The birthplace of the composer Ján Cikker (°1911; > Bratislava) has been marked by a plaque.

House of the composer Mikuláš Moyzes (until 1908) and birthplace of his son Alexander, °1906, who became one of the leading composers of Slovakia (> Bratislava).

The crowd on the third photo attends the unveiling of the plaque.

Monument of the composer Alexander Moyzes (1906-84; > Bratislava).

Birthplace of the organist, teacher and composer Mikuláš Moyzes (1872-1944), the father of Alexander M.

The Detva Folklore Festival pod Pol’anu was established in 1966 and is yearly held in the second week of July, the Krajanska Nedel’a . 1200 to 1500 singers, players and dancers participate in open air performances. The program includes the making and marketing of folk instruments.

The Folklore Festival Východná was established in 1953 and is yearly held on the first weekend of July. Around 1400 performers from several countries present themselves. There are also events for children. Východná is the gate to the Low and the High Tatras.

The organist, teacher and composer Mikuláš Moyzes lived and worked here from 1908 until his death in 1944. The plaque is at a school building. His grave is at the local cemetery.

Photos by J. Kotolič (wiki)

Košice, the focal point of eastern Slovakia and the second city of the country, has a fine opera house; it was built in the years 1879-1899 after the design of Adolf Lang and then called ‘Austro-Hungarian Theatre’. It is also used for spoken drama, judging by the Shakespeare scenes on the painted ceiling.

In front of the building is a ‘singing fountain’ which offers a real water ballet on the sound of a carillon with 22 bells at every hour and also on pop music during the intervening time.

Beautiful organ front from 1645; Rückpositiv from 1769. On account of some Polish characteristics, the unknown maker might have been a Pole. The present pneumatic instrument by Rieger has 15 stops.

The wooden church is a real gem, as is the organ by Vavrinec Čajkovský, 1720. It has 2 manuals and 18 (orig. 12) stops.

organ positive by Bartolomej Fromm from Spišská Nová Ves , 1651, with 9 stops (salicional from later date). 

The larger organ front by Matthias Poll from 1641 houses a pneumatic instrument by Rieger.

Impressive broad organ front by Ondrej Pažický, 1797 or 1799, with 23 fields and crown positive. The interior was replaced in 1902 by a new instrument by Rieger.

The museum is devoted to forestry and hunt, but it houses a positive organ from the 17^th century with 5 stops; maker unknown. It is portable by means of staves through the rings at the chest sides.

Double organ front from 1754, perhaps by Martin Podkomický, with very rich decorations. The original disposition – 2 manuals and pedal, 18 stops ─ was replaced in c 1910 by a new one by the Angster factory. The church belonged to a former monastery.

Organ positive by Michael Podkomický, 1787, 1 manual, 8 stops; the console is at the back side. Exceptional: all the parts are still in their original state and well functioning.

Organ positive in pulpit form next to the altar. Made by Johann Hencke, 1763, with 1 manual, 8 stops. The Erdödy castle was demolished, only the chapel survived thanks to the paintings of Anton Maulbertsch. The console is in the sacristy. 

Organ by Jan Xaver Vymola, 1771, orig. 2 manuals, 23 stops. The organ ─ a gift by empress Maria Theresia ─ went through a drastic extension in 1950 into 5 manuals and 91 stops by the state-owned factory Varhany; Vymola’s front (and pipes?) form only a part of it.

Organ positive from the beginning of the 18^th century, in original state, with 6 stops and fine paintings.