KVĚCH, OTOMAR (b. 1950)

Otomar Kvěch is a classically trained musician from the Czech Republic (born May 25, 1950) who is presently professor of music at the Academy of Music (AMU) in Prague where he earlier also obtained his degrees in composition and organ performance.

 

During the 1970's, he was influenced by the so-called "New Music," especially by contemporary Polish composers. But then he experienced a style reversion for himself. Instead of trying to write interesting and modern music, he returned to his center and to his belief that an expressive melodic line, distinct harmony and well-arranged composition were the foundation stones of musical speech in the European musical tradition from the early baroque to the present. For him, sound color is an important component of composition which cannot be replaced by rhythm, line, etc. Sound is a carrier of the musical idea but not its substance.

 

Otomar Kvěch has consciously tried to develop his own musical speech as many masters of the past have done. He has received a number of prizes in domestic and foreign competitions for composers for his compositions which include orchestral, chamber and vocal works. His music is performed throughout Western and Eastern Europe, the USA, and Australia.

 

Kvěch's past professional experiences include being the music producer for Czechoslovak Radio as well as its dramaturgist and editor of contemporary music, secretary for the Union of Composers, and assistant at the National Theatre Opera in Prague.