Opera and Musical Instrument Museum

I really enjoyed seeing the performance of The Bartered Bride. Normally, I think of very dark and dramatic stories when I think of opera. However, this particular performance was very refreshing because the story itself was very lighthearted, and had some humorous elements. I noticed that the performers themselves seemed to be enjoying the opera just as much as the audience did. I thought that the set design was done very well. Having the field on stage as a vertical structure rather than a horizontal one allowed the audience to have a better view of the performers, but also added to the plot. The performers were able to slide down the field pieces, which allowed the characters in the opera to interact with their setting and portray the mood of the scenes to a greater extent. Also, having the ensemble characters spin the set piece that the main female character was standing on helped to portray the societal pressure from the townspeople and the overwhelming decision that the main character had to make in regards to marrying someone she did not like. Overall, I really liked this opera for its creative use of the set design in advancing the plot and showing some character development.

We were told that the museum housing historical musical instruments would be closed the day that we were going to go as a class, so I went to see it on another day with a group of friends. It was amazing! In particular, the museum had a rather extensive collection of flutes from different stages of development. Seeing the flutes with no keys or embouchure plates, as well as flutes made at a later time, with increasing numbers of keys makes me feel really thankful that I play a modern flute, complete with open-hole keys and various attachments that help me to more easily produce a good sound. Seeing all of the earlier forms of instruments really puts the modern instrument constructions into perspective, because it makes me realize that developing instruments takes decades, and even centuries of innovation. Even the Boehm system of flute structure that the modern flute is based on was not initially accepted by musicians, partly because it required learning a different fingering system from what people were used to. Many history books explore the various ways in which the flute evolved, but there must be more flutes that haven't even been discovered, because some systems could have been created, but were never widely accepted, and thus not preserved.

It is so interesting to explore Prague. I noticed that while Old Town does have many historical buildings with very intriguing backgrounds and stories associated with them, it is largely a tourist shopping district. I find it very interesting that while almost no buildings are currently being used for their original purposes, the old buildings that have existed for centuries are preserved, including the symbols and crests on the outside, which were once used to identify what type of craft or other job was performed there. I have really enjoyed getting to experience a city so different from anything I'm familiar with at home. This opportunity to experience different cultures and places is beyond anything I could have expected, and it is definitely worth revisiting these cities again in the future.

Building that initially housed violin makers

Opera house that performed The Bartered Bride

Giraffe piano from instrument museum

Various types of flutes - the ones with keys can play chromatically

Ivory flute with no keys or embouchure plate