Wednesday, October 3, 2007
VĚSTNÍK also used in Persia, India, the Balkans, Korea, China, Thailand, Germany, Belarus, France, Holland, Poland, Russia, and the United States.
The instrument is played with two beaters striking against 109 or more strings. It entered Europe in the Middle Ages. It is generally accompanied by stringed instruments.
Yes, you have heard it before in the movies: The Black Stallion, The Ipcress File, The Persuaders, Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Lord of the Rings - The Two Towers, In the
Heat of the Night, or if you had attended any great wine cellar parties in the Czech Republic or at the Grand Opening of the Czech Center in March, 2005, as a component of the
Frenstat Museum Vice Chair Expresses Appreciation
Wallachian to fellow countrymen in Texas, and fellow countrymen in Texas to our city: Last year (2006), it’s been 150 years since the first citizens of Frenštát p.R. moved out to Texas, USA and surroundings. Within the frame of this important anniversary, not only for our countrymen but also for whole Wallachia and the whole Czech Republic, Wallachian ensemble Radhoš,ť from Trojanovice, and the dulcimer band, Radegast, travelled to Texas, as they had been invited by the Czech Heritage Society of Texas. There were 12 dancers: Petr Adámek, Jiřina Batečková, Alena Genzerová, Bohumír Holub, Marta Jalůvková, Jana Juračáková, Eva Káňová, Josef Káňa Sr., Josef Káňa Jr., Vladimír Klimeš, Jana Maritnáková and David Vašek. As for the dulcimer band Radegast, there were: Tomáš Frňka (clarinet and fipple flute), Radomír Golas, Sr. (violin counter), Radomír Golas, Jr. (dulcimer), Bořek Vitásek (first fiddle) and Marek Žingor (contrabass). The city mayors of Frenštát p.R., Pavel Orlík, and of Trojanovice, Drahomír Strnadel, the driver, Jan Mička and his wife took part, too. After the arrival in Houston, we were greeted by members of the Czech Heritage Society of Texas, including its president, Jean Blaha Davis and her husband Waymond. Also waiting to meet us was Mr. Gunter Merkl, who loaned us his dulcimer and van and traveled with us during our tour in Texas. After a brief rest, we had our first performance. Then we left to Victoria, where another performance followed. The Czech orchestra played and a member of our tour, Rev. Swienczek, sang with them. In San Antonio we had a great opportunity take a view of that beautiful city from a gazebo. We also visited a museum of 26 ethnical denominations which had settled down in Texas. There was also the Czech exhibit. Then other performances followed: two in Wall, one in West, one in Ennis, one in Caldwell. In Hallettsville, people are used to having so-called Koláčkový festival in September, where we also performed. Then we left to twin-town of Frenštát, La Grange, with its 4500 inhabitants, where there is a center of Czech inheritance and the culture of Texas – and that is where Pavel Strnadel deliver visitors book of Czech history to the delegate of La Grange. Other perfomances followed in College Station and Austin – right in the State of Texas Capitol Rotunda, which is the seat of the governor, the Senate and the Parliament of Texas. During our performance, a letter from the governor to our ensemble was read (with telecasting, too). Then our performance in Elgin followed where some of our performers met their relatives who had ancestors who had lived in Frenštát before (and now live in Texas). Then our performance in Flatonia, Fort Bend, and Needville followed. We had rest days in Corpus Christi by Mexican Bay where we visited ship called USS Lexington, the Sea Aquarium, and the Space Center of NASA
in Houston. Texas has 20 million inhabitants and one million are made up of Czech ancestry. Those who saw our performance were excited. They even didn’t waver to come from a distance. So we managed to draw close to the fellow countrymen. The Wallachian ensemble travelled through one third of Texas, their line was about 4000 km and showed 17 performaces in 15 cities. We had to move from various places to others in quite a short time. The fellow countrymen greeted us with Jak se máš? (how are you?), and they even fasten this greeting on their cars so that we could recognize them. Not only was our audience excited, but even we were. We loved children who behaved so spontaneous when we played some of our Wallachian games. It was really nice to meet Mr. Michalík and Mr. Konvička, whose households we were allowed to visit, too. All that was thanks to the financial support of sponsors from Frenštát p.R., Department of Foreign Business and Department of Culture of the Czech Republic. We received a letter when we got home from the Czech Heritage Society of Texas: “We would like to thank all memebers of Radhošť for thier taking part in perfomances in Texas. The atmosphere was phenomenal and many people enjoyed it, especially the older ones, who will hardly see the Czech Republic again. Your perfomances in Wall School, Flatonia School and Needville School showed your traditional culture and music to our youth. They obviously enjoyed it, too. We will never forget you. Thank you, thank you, thank you once again for your professionality, your endurance, your passion and that you are what you are. We hope you’ll always keep that, we hope you’ll let us know what you’re preparing that will be even greater. If you wanted to come back to Texas we would be pleased to see you again. Yours sincerely, Jean Blaha Davis.”
Robert Janák, one of the most important Texas historians, claimed that most of those people who moved out to Texas in 19th century (from Moravia) were right from Frenštát. That was one of the reasons Frenštát and Trojanovice organized the exhibition (1992) Tam za mořem je Amerika — it was the 500th anniversary of discovering America. June, 16, 2007, our museum was opened within the frame of celebration of 625th anniversary of establishing our city. In the museum, there is the exhibition Tam za mořem with presentation of emigrants list. In 2004, I was asked to locate a cotton wagon, which was really necessary in emigrants’ lives as well as in ranchers’ lives, especially for harvesting cotton. However, due to the lack of finances in 2004, we didn’t manage to buy it. Then we got some money from European Union resources, and
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so we could purchase it. Darwin Machu managed to locate a wagon in Fredericksburg, Texas, and had it delivered to the customs broker in Austin on October 3, where it was stored and then loaded into a container, along with about 100 donated items, for shipment to Frenstat. Thanks to the interest of Mr. Darwin Lee Machu and his wife, Nancy, people in Texas became interested in donating some items to the museum. Mr. and Mrs. Machu solicited donations from fellow countrymen, through newspapers and magazines like Našinec, SPJST Věstník, České Stopy, and Český Hlas. Bennie and John Stansy, Bill Hodon (photodocumentary) helped them a lot. Some items were donated through the Texas Czech Geneological Society headed by Charlene Hurta, President. These are some of the providers for the museum: Edwin Hlavaty, from Caldwell who donated about 40 items; Nancy and Darwin Machu of Round Rock, who donated approximately 40 items; Georgie and Willie Rainosek from San Antonio, who donated four items; Carol Kitchen from Austin; Arthur Kocurek from Houston; John Hejl from Caldwell; Roger Mechura from Houston; Caroll Warschak from Waco; Leroy and Laverne Bacak from El Campo; Aline Barta from Weimar; Florian Kana from La Grange; Patsy Fuller Robertson from Sheridan; Travis/Williamson County Czech Heritage Society (whose chair is Vlasta Vitek from Austin); Irene Polansky from Fayetteville; Frank and Clair Svrcek from Houston; Annie Cream Michalsky from Crosby; Joe Vrabel from Granger; Katherine Morris from Temple; Charlene and Leroy Hurta from Angleton. Jean and Waymon Davis from Dime Box and Vlasta Korenek also donated items. Finally, about 100 items were gathered and transported to Darwin and Nancy’s home where they were inventoried and photographed and prepared for transporting to Houston in a container. I was at the Machu home while the preparations were made for shipping. Then the container was transported to Houston and loaded into an oceangoing vessel which was shipped on October 12, 2006, just when our ensemble Radhošť was getting ready to fly back to the Czech Republic. In closing, I wish to thank everyone who participated in the successful opening of the museum in Frenstat by donating so many interesting farm items, documents and other memorabilia for display. I especially wish to thank the organizers, too — Nancy and Darwin Lee Machu, Bennie and Johny Stansy and Bill Hodon for their hard work in procuring donations, the Texas Czech Genealogical Society, and all those who are responsible for opening Frenštát’s exhibition Tam za mořem. Ing. Radomir Golas Vice-Chair of Museum Association Frenštát p.R. Czech Republic —SPJST—