April 28 – May 2, 2025
On the morning of Monday, April 28, 2025, we welcomed guests from two wonderful schools to the main hall of our school – the Conservatorio Profesional de Música "Miguel Fleta" de Monzón from Spain and the Osnovna glazbena škola Ivana Zajca from Zagreb, Croatia. Special thanks go to our colleague Yulia Tkachenko, who, together with her students from the music and dance departments, prepared a beautiful welcome ceremony.
Our first joint steps led us to the town hall, where Mayor František Jiraský introduced the history and present of our town. In the morning, we also visited the Museum of Czech Car Body Building and the municipal gallery, ending our walk in St. Lawrence Church, where our colleagues from the local grammar school, Kristina Slezáčková and Katherine O’Neal, gave us a guided tour.
In the afternoon, students from all three schools split into two groups – choir singers and orchestra players – to begin rehearsing Croatian, Spanish, and Czech pieces separately.
Over the next two days, we explored the beauty of our region together – the chateau in Nové Hrady and the city of Pardubice, including a visit to the Pardubice Conservatory. In the afternoons, we gathered for joint rehearsals, now as one united ensemble.
On Thursday, a national holiday in the Czech Republic, everyone focused on the evening concert held at the Šembera's Theatre. The first part of the concert featured students from the Spanish and Croatian schools performing their own repertoires. In the second part, a Czech-Croatian choir, joined by several Spanish singers, and a Czech-Spanish symphony orchestra performed six pieces together:
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Neka cijeli ovaj svijet (Alfi Kabiljo)
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Naranča (Croatian folk song, arr. Deniza Gjini)
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Amparito Roca (Jaime Texidor, arr. Aubrey Winter)
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Sueños de sal (Óscar Navarro)
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Modlitba pro Martu (Jindřich Brabec, arr. David Lukáš)
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Jede sedlák (Czech folk song, arr. Zdeněk Lukáš)
The complexity of the shared repertoire and its international interpretation were rewarded with a standing ovation.
We spent Friday in the town of Litomyšl, where we explored the life and legacy of Bedřich Smetana. Special thanks to our Croatian colleague Željka Serdarušić and her student Filip Brkičić, who prepared a presentation on art education in Croatia for our teachers. This was followed by an inspiring discussion comparing artistic education systems in Czechia, Croatia, and Spain.
We closed the mobility with a final gathering in the school’s main hall – enjoying music, dancing, and celebrating not only exceptional musical performances but also the newly formed friendships.
Many thanks to all the host families who looked after students from Croatia and Spain throughout the week.
And a heartfelt thank you to all the teachers who helped make this mobility project such a success.
Filip Janouch
