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Around town

Cultural serenade

By Frank Kuznik
Staff Writer, The Prague Post
August 8th, 2007 issue

Is it any wonder that locals flee the city in the summer? Between the gangs of drunken Brits and mobs of Americans, Italians and gawkers of inscrutable origin flooding the streets and shops, it’s enough to drive anyone out of town.

But amid the crass invasion is a group of musicians who visit Prague every summer with more in mind than seeing the sights. In fact, unless you attend their concerts, you’ll never see them, as they’re literally locked away for three weeks with aspiring students from around the globe who want the experience of studying in one of the great music centers of Europe.
The program is called Ameropa, and this year it attracted approximately 120 amateur musicians from 15 countries, ranging in age from 12 to 70. Some 30 instructors, mostly from the United States and the Czech Republic, ran classes and workshops focusing on skills that most music students don’t get in the classroom.
“We help people develop their ear,” explained David Ehrlich, an American violinist. “In a typical music school, you’re taught theory and individual development. Here, you’re put with a group of people and have to learn to listen to each other and play together.”
“It’s just like actors working on a film,” said Robert Ward, a pianist from Southern California. “You have to develop chemistry.”
Ehrlich, Ward and the founder of the program, Illinois Wesleyan music professor Vadim Mazo, took time out from their hectic schedule for coffee one evening last week in the café at Marks & Spencer on Wenceslas Square. Mazo, who first visited Prague in 1992 and started Ameropa the following year, could only marvel at the surroundings and creamy cappuccinos. “When I first came here, coffee meant throwing some grounds into hot water,” he said.
There was a lot of talk about Prague’s hallowed music tradition and the logistics of running classes for mixed groups of every imaginable skill level. But what the instructors were most excited about are the bridges their program builds.
“You have people from different lives and cultures, and sometimes from adversarial countries, who have to sit down together and share a masterwork,” Ehrlich said. “In that situation, you learn that it is possible to have a conversation.”
“Those other things are about politics,” said Ward. “Music speaks from the heart.”
“We’re studying ‘Slavic Masters’ this year, but I think next year’s theme is going to be ‘West meets East,’ ” said Mazo. “We want to make sure there’s not another Cold War. And the arts are where people come together.”
It’s a lofty ambition for a summer music program, but very much in keeping with Prague’s geographical position at the crossroads of Central Europe and the growing number of international performers who have come through the city in recent years. Ameropa is part of that, with students of every stripe and hue taking the stage to show what they’ve learned about playing together.
Last Wednesday night it was the instructors’ turn to show off their chops in a chamber music concert at Suk Hall that was almost comical at times. The American singer murdered the Czech language in the Dvořák songs, and the Russian violinist couldn’t keep time in the Glinka sextet.
But it didn’t matter. A rotating mix of nationalities performed five pieces by Czech and Russian composers, and when the best ensemble closed with a rousing rendition of Tchaikovsky’s Souvenir de Florence, the audience — itself a heady mix of Japanese, Americans, Czechs and Russians — applauded and cheered like football fans.
It was a great moment, akin to what the instructors call the “Eureka moment” when a student suddenly sees how a piece should be played. And a convincing demonstration: While proper technique takes a lifetime to master, cultural bonds can be forged in the time it takes to play a serenade.
 

Frank Kuznik can be reached at fkuznik@praguepost.com


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