Day 4 - Ending on a High Note

Tonight we attended a second concert, part of the International Prague Spring Festival. This was held in the Smetana Hall at the Municipal Building. It looked and felt much different than it did on our tour with so many people in the room.

Diane's navigational skills are AWE - full while mine are simply awful. She manoevered us thru the dense crowds there and back in record time without a map! If it had been me, we would have ended up lost, miles away from our destination.

The concert was world class. It featured the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra and a guest pianist whose fingers moved like lightning across the keys, yet so gracefully it seemed he barely made contact. He used no sheet music to play very complex melodies!

The conductor was interesting to watch - his physical movements, his smile & his obvious pride in the orchestra's performance. Diane noticed that he singled out those musicians who could not readily be seen by the audience for applause. It led me to wonder things like... How do you learn to be a conductor? Are the conductor's cues to the orchestra a variation of sign language? Are there any famous female conductors?

I noticed that all the people playing stringed instruments held bows in their right hands. Can a person play the violin well using the bow in their left hand? Could they be part of an orchestra given the seating and symmetry you see when everyone is playing on stage?

Anther observation was the difference in expressions & body movements of three oboe (?) musicians. The one closest to the audience smiled constantly & bobbed his head wildly as he played. The one in the middle barely moved & had no expression on his face. The 3rd changed the intensity of his facial expressions constantly and his body seemed to meld with his instrument.

On our way back, I took some pics along Charles Street - here, souvenier shops sell chandeliers and candy that looks like fried eggs. 😯Read more