Liberal Arts Blog — Keys to the Hearts of Seven Billion People XXVIII — “Holka Modrooka” Czech Republic
By: John Muresianu
Tags: Song, Music, Czech Republic, Culture, Liberal Arts Blog

Liberal Arts Blog — Keys to the Hearts of Seven Billion People XXVIII — “Holka Modrooka” Czech Republic John Muresianu Oct 22, 2020·4 min read

Liberal Arts Blog — Thursday is Joy of Music Day

Today’s Topic — Keys to the Hearts of Seven Billion People XXVIII — “Holka Modrooka” Czech Republic

Czechs are proud of their musical heritage — including composers Bedrich Smetana (1824–1884) Antonin Dvorak (1841–1904), and Leos Janacek (1854–1928). But the song identified by Czech friends as their favorite was not written by one of those famous guys. The composer and lyricist are unknown. Today, the opening lyrics and the music of “Holka Modrooka.” Plus a few background notes on Czechia.The photo below is of Antonin Dvorak. The last link is to Dvorak’s “Slavonic Dances.” Experts — please chime in. Correct, elaborate, elucidate.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTOUuhAxR8k

LYRICS — Holka Modrooka — “Girl with Blue Eyes”

Holka modrooka nesedavej u potoka, Holka modrooka nesedavej tam V potoce se voda toci podomele tvoje oci, Holka modrooka nesedavej tam

Girl with the blue eyes, do not sit by the brook, girl with the blue eyes do not sit there In the brook the water is spinning, it will hurt your eyes, Girl with the blues, do not sit there

MUSIC

CZECH REPUBLIC (CZECHIA): three regions (Bohemia, Moravia, Czech Silesia), half of old Czechoslovakia, Prague (1939, 1968,1989)

1. The Czech Republic is composed of three historical regions (Bohemia, Moravia, and Czech Silesia) as depicted above. Most of Silesia is in Poland.

2. Czechoslovakia split up into the Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1993. Slovakia’s capital is Bratislava. The Czech and Slovak languages are mutually intelligible. And I have not met a Slovak who does not know Holka Modrooka.

3. Hitler’s tanks rolled into Prague in March, 1939 in a prelude to World War II (and a postscript to the Munich capitulation). Soviet tanks rolled into Prague in August 1968 to suppress protests, and the Velvet Revolution of November to December of 1989 ended the 41 year old Communist Party dictatorship.

NB: Czechs are an unusually secular people — with 30% atheists and 45% undeclared.

Holka modrooká

Czech Republic

Music of the Czech Republic

Bedřich Smetana

Leoš Janáček

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anton%C3%ADn_Dvo%C5%99%C3%A1k

Slovakia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Velvet_Revolution

Prague Spring

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_occupation_of_Czechoslovakia

Antonín Dvořák: Slavonic Dances

APPENDIX: Keys to the Hearts of Seven Billion People — Past Posts in This Series This is the list of songs with which, now masked and distanced, I greet tourists from around the world at the North Bridge in Concord or wherever I else I happened to meet them — eg. waiting in line at grocery stores, pharmacies, banks, or the Department of Motor Vehicles. I feel strongly that the core humanities curriculum of every school in the world should consist of the most beloved songs of the world’s peoples. Music unites. The opportunity cost of any other texts is infinite. Why not give every 18 year old the keys to hearts of seven billion people? I am not sure this is the perfect list. But I have spent 10 years testing the hypothesis. And the results are not scientific but they are pretty convincing. Proposals welcome.

4/9/20 — Nkosi — South African National Anthem

4/16/20 — Sweet Mother — unofficial national Anthem of Nigeria

4/23/20 — Jambo — the Swahili equivalent — Tanzania, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda

4/30/20 — Sakura — Japan — the cherry blossom song

5/7/20 — Arirang — Korea (North and South)

5/14/20 — Chuang Qian Ming Yue Guang” — China — Li Bai — Gong Linna

5/21/20 — Ode to Joy — German — Beethoven/Schiller

5/28/20 — La Marseillaise — French — France plus many more french-speaking nations

6/4/20 — Volare — Italian — Domenico Modugno

6/11/20 — Arrorro and Cielito Lindo — Spanish speakers

6/18/20 — La Garota de Ipanema — Brazil and other Portuguese speakers

6/22/20 — Gayatri Mantra — Hindus

7/2/20 — Pokarekare Ana — Maori — New Zealand

7/9/20 — Aseda Yede Ma Onyame — Ghana

7/16/20 — “Al Fatihah” — most sacred Islamic prayer (Arabic)

7/23/20 — “Tavaszi Szel” — Hungarian Folk Song

7/30/20 — “Modeh Ani” — the Jewish Waking Up Prayer

8/6/20 — “Stolat, Stolat” — Polish Birthday Song

8/20/20 — “Lang Zal Ze Leven” — Dutch Birthday Song

8/27/20 — “Oh Danny Boy” — Ireland

9/3/20 — “Mul Mantra” — most sacred Sikh prayer

9/10/20 — “Warwindar Friska” — Swedish song of spring

9/17/20 — “Desteapta-te Romane!” — Romanian national anthem

9/24/20 — “Kad Ja Podjoh Na Bembasu” — Bosnian folk song of lost love

10/1/20 — “Waltzing Matilda” — Australia

10/8/20 — “Calon Lan” — Wales

10/15/20 -”Ngoromera” — Zimbabwe — Oliver “Tuku” Mtukudzi

10/22/20 — “Holka Modrooka” — Czech Republic

Here is a link to the last three years of posts organized by theme:

PDF with headlines — Google Drive

YOUR TURN

Time to share the coolest thing you learned in the last week related to music. Or the coolest thing you learned in your life related to music. Say your favorite song or songs. Or your favorite tips for breathing, posture, or relaxation. Or some insight into the history of music….Or just something random about music… like a joke about drummers.jazz, rock….or share an episode or chapter in your musical autobiography.

This is your chance to make some one else’s day. And perhaps to cement in your memory something important you would otherwise forget. Or to think more deeply than you otherwise would about something that matters to you.