Mr. Marco Smaili Miras is a professor of classical guitar at the CONSERVATORIO PROFESIONAL DE MÚSICA "GUITARRISTA JOSÉ TOMÁS" DE ALICANTE in Spain.
The Vysoké Mýto Music School has had a successful collaboration with this Spanish school through the Erasmus program for several years. From April 21 to 28, 2024, Mr. Marco Smaili Miras visited Vysoké Mýto and actively participated in guitar lessons in the class of Mgr. Jiří Vedral, who had shadowed his teaching in Spain three years prior. The highlight of Mr. Smaili Miras's visit to Vysoké Mýto was his concert during the festive event celebrating the 150th anniversary of the birth of piano virtuoso Noemi Jirečková. Marco Smaili performed works by old masters of Spanish classical guitar, as well as his own compositions, which are also part of the repertoire of world-renowned guitar virtuosos. His performance included the "Four Bagatelles," which he played alongside Antonín Hošek, a student from Vysoké Mýto who had recently returned from a one-month internship at the Alicante conservatory. Their joint performance was an unforgettable experience for the enthusiastic audience.
The meeting with the Spanish professor was also memorable for the students who had the opportunity to share their art with him during lessons and receive his advice and opinions. For example, demonstrations of the interpretation of instructive works by Spanish composers directly from a native performer were enriching, as were the teachers' methods.
Marco Smaili also learned much from the Czech experience, whether it was the use of folk songs in teaching, methods for teaching electric guitar, or improvisation. He enthusiastically participated in rock and jazz ensemble lessons. The two colleagues continued to discuss pedagogical and methodological experiences long after the lessons.
Mr. Marco Smaili also explored Vysoké Mýto and its surroundings, he visited Litomyšl—the birthplace of Bedřich Smetana, Nové Hrady, Choceň, and he was delighted with the Czech nature, ponds, as well as the art exhibitions of Jiří Křiklava at the town gallery, Mašek's Art nouveau frescoes, and Brandl's baroque altar at the Church of St. Lawrence, where he was guided in excellent italian by the local priest. He was also fascinated by the museum of carriage-making. Marco was very interested in the everyday life of Czech people and, of course, the local gastronomy. As a fan of Czech composer Prof. Martin Smolka’s work, he was surprised and thrilled by a phone conversation with him.
The week with Marco Smaili Miras passed quickly and provided both sides with unforgettable experiences and new ideas for the future. We hope the collaboration between the two schools continues.
The cooperation and friendship between the educators will certainly continue, which is one of the goals of the Erasmus project.
