O světě, který tu je i není - o věcech výjimečných i banálních, podivuhodných i trapných, temných i oslnivých, tristních i směšných, paradoxních i logických, stejně tak však i o věcech temně zářících, tragikomických, podivuhodně banálních, výjimečně trapných či zcela logicky paradoxních. A o sobě, který tu je i není stejně tak.

pondělí 7. prosince 2015

Vladimír Hirsch - Horae (Organ Concerto No.2)

Vladimír Hirsch playing Organ concerto No.2 "Horae"
The album was released by SuRRism PhonoEthics label on December 5, 2015. It is concerto for organ, integrated techniques, clockworks and field recordings, op.90,  whose orginal version was composed in 2011.

Conceptual composition, working - in terms of sound conception and metaphorically - a study of properties and interactions of time and space. Musicians: Vladimír Hirsch - organ, piano and other keyboards, synthesizers, electronics, field recordings, hourly mechanics, digital technique). The album was recorded live at the Cultural Centre "Žižkostel" (Church of the Czechoslovak Hussite Church, Barikád Square, Prague 3, 25 April 2015. Mixed at CatchArrow Recordings studio, Prague, Czechia (November 2015)

© 2015 SuRRism Phonoethics 
sPE_0248

Parts:

1. Ingressa
2. Arcuata
3. Pugnax
4. Mobilis
5. Tracta
6. Spiralis
7. Extera
8. Ultima 



pátek 30. října 2015

Vladimír Hirsch - Descent From The Cross review by Stephen Eddins

Vladimír Hirsch
The music of Czech composer Vladimír Hirsch seems like the work of a real original, a maverick who has forged an aesthetic that doesn't sound quite like anything else. A medical doctor for nearly 20 years, he turned to music as a full-time career around the turn of the millennium. While he sees himself very much a part of the Western classical tradition -- he cites Dvorák, Janácek, Stravinsky, Ligeti, and Scelsi as influences -- and he has a strong background in alternative rock, Hirsch's relentlessly dark, apocalyptic music is more likely to sound at home as an installation in an abandoned industrial park than in a concert hall or pop concert. He uses live performers -- in his Fourth Symphony, an orchestra, chorus, and soloist -- but electronics also play a major role. The symphony, subtitled "Descent from the Cross," refers to a rawly realistic painting by Hans Holbein the Younger, and to Dostoyevsky's reflections on it in The Idiot. The symphony's six movements, which depict the time between Christ's death and entombment, assault the listener with a dense barrage of ostinatos, drones, industrial noise, and unpredictable eruptions, and are immensely evocative and truly scary; this is not the kind of thing most people would want to listen to alone in the dark. The music has a power that's hard to explain but that's undeniably compelling. Fans of new work that stretches boundaries and that has a visceral punch are likely to be intrigued or even deeply moved by Hirsch's ominous, tempestuous sound worlds.





pátek 28. srpna 2015

Vladimír Hirsch - Rozhovor pro Aktuálně.cz

Aktuálně.cz - Vladimír Hirsch

Vladimír Hirsch - Aktuálně.cz 25.8.2015

V.Hirsch: Česko a Czechia? Nadčasový název země si zasloužíme. "Měli bychom vystupovat jako stálá značka, začněme třeba u hokejových dresů", říká skladatel Vladimír Hirsch, který bojuje za název Czechia. Iniciativa má prý podporu nejvyšších představitelů státu.

sobota 11. července 2015

Olivier Bernard: Anthologie de l´ambient

Part III B: Une artist très intéressant dans la mouvance martial/neoclassical ambient est le Tchèque Vladimir Hirsch. Hirsch possède une formation classique, mais s'est  très tôt tourné vers le punk, et tous types de musique expérimentales (du rock au jazz en passant par l'électronique). Il va fonder deux groupes essentiels pour le genre qui nous intéresse : Skrol (composé de Hirsch, Tom Saivon et Martina Sanollová) et Aghiatrias. Au sein de ces formations, Hirsch est le compositeur attitré, réalisant des morceaux néoclassiques, saupoudrés de rythmes martiaux. Le mélange est très avant-gardiste, souvant expérimental. Skrol utilise des instruments à cordes, des cuivres, de l'orgue, avec beaucoup de percussions et des textures électronique dark ambient. Cela est particulièrement audible sur l'album Heretical Antiphony de Skrol, paru en 1999. Des chants masculins et féminins apparaîtront petit à petit, pour laisser place à plus d'émotions dans cette atmosphère bruyante, inspirée par l'emphase de certaines pièces de musique classique moderne. Aghiatrias s'est créé en 1999. C'est un projet de «musique intégrée», mené par Hirsch et Tom Saivon. Aghiatrias se veut moins imposant que Skrol. Ne délaissant pas l'élément martial de leur musique, elle se veut plus calme et méditative, plus proche du dark ambient et de l'ambient industrial que Skrol, avec l'accent mis sur les structures de la musique classique contemporaine. Aghiatrias sortira un album dark ambient en 2004 su le label tchèque Epidemie Records, intitulé Regions Of Limen.


A very interesting artist movement in the martial / neoclassical ambient is the Czech Vladimir Hirsch. Hirsch has a classical training but has turned to the early punk, and all types of experimental music (from rock to jazz to electronics). He founded two essential projects for the genre we are interested in: Skrol (Hirsch, Tom Saivon and Martina Sanollová) and Aghiatrias. Within these trainings, Hirsch is the resident composer, realizing neoclassical pieces, sprinkled with martial rhythms. His works are very avant-garde and experimental. In Skrol, he uses strings, brasses, organ, with lots of percussion and ambient dark electronic textures. This is especially audible on the album Heretical Antiphony Skrol, published in 1999. Male and female vocals appear gradually for giving way for more emotion to this noisy atmosphere, inspired by the emphasis of certain pieces of modern classical. Aghiatrias was established in 1999. It is a project of "integrated music", led by Hirsch and Tom Saivon. Aghiatrias project is less imposing than Skrol. It does not abandon martial elements, but wants to be more quiet and meditative, closer to the dark ambient and ambient industrial than Skrol, with the focus on the structures of contemporary classical music. Among others, Aghiatrias released distinctly dark ambient album in 2004, entitled Regions Of Limen.

neděle 5. července 2015

Soundcloud: Vladimír Hirsch - Integrated Music Records

Demo tracks from Vladimír Hirsch' s solo works and his projects Skrol, Aghiatrias, Luminar Ax, Zygote, Subpop Squeeze, Tiria & cooperations.

Vladimír Hirsch

Vladimír Hirsch is a Czech composer, instrumentalist and sound designer, integrating modern classical, industrial and dark ambient music with a genre overlap concept. Besides creating solo works, he is the leading personality of bands and projects Skrol, Aghiatrias, Zygote (CZ), Luminar Ax, Subpop Squeeze, and Tiria, former member of experimental post-punk group Der Marabu.

His concept of so called "integrated music" of Vladimír Hirsch is a kind of extrapolation of the combination of contemporary classical music on the one side and dark ambient, industrial and noise components on the other side, which, through mutual infiltration by basic theses and antitheses. Compositions are based on grasping both ways in a manner, which would allow them to partake of each other’s principal formal attributes, both on the basis of violent confrontation and of mutual empathy, which should lead to a unification of seemingly irreconcilable worlds. This happens with the help of musical symbolism of their transubstantiation into a single, indivisible essence, a fully homogenous structure. This act represents the metaphorical and philosophical principle of Hirsch’s integrated music conception.

sobota 4. července 2015

Vladimír Hirsch - Lamiadae: Symmetric Variations I-III

Lamiadae: Symmetric Variations, op.88
Varitions for pianos nad integrated technique. 2011-2012. From "Selected Organ & Piano Works" (©2013 Integrated Music Records – Catch 054).

1-Symmetric Variation 1
2-Symmetric Variation 2
3-Symmetric Variation 3



A selection of compositions, created between 1977 and 2012. The collection combines unpublished tracks or adjusted versions of previously released material. All tracks revisited, re-recorded and remixed at CatchArrow Recordings studio, Prague, Czechia, 2012. Musicians:Vladimír Hirsch – organs, pianos, electroacoustic, analogue and digital techniques
© 2013 Integrated Music Records – Catch 054 (2CDR),
suRRism-Phonoethics – sPE_0143 (DIG)

VLADIMÍR HIRSCH – ‘SELECTED ORGAN & PIANO WORKS’



sobota 7. února 2015

Česká názvoslovná patologie - příjímaná, ale nefunkční "republika" versus odmítané, ale potřebné Česko

Dlouhodobě negativní vymezení se proti názvu "Česko" (resp.jeho anglické obdobě "Czechia") především ze strany politické reprezentace státu a mediálních exhibicionistů lze považovat za hluboký a škodlivý omyl, neboť stát, obzvláště pak historicky zakotvený, tento název nezbytně potřebuje. Proč ? 


Nejprve je nezbytné odmítnout primární rozdělení názvů na "krátké" a "dlouhé", protože tato typologie pomíjí zásadní atributy, kterými jsou název politický na jedné a zeměpisný na druhé straně. V neposlední řadě je též třeba vyslovit podiv nad úporností domněnky, že zeměpisný název aspiruje na vytlačení názvu politického, jakkoli nikdo nikdy nic takového nevyslovil. Vždy se jednalo a jedná o samozřejmou koexistenci obou názvů, jde pouze o to, jak a kdy je používat. Zatímco název politický je vhodný pouze pro oficiální dokumenty typu mezinárodních smluv, název zeměpisný má jasně definovatelnou přirozenou funkci ve všech ostatních případech. 

Politický název nemůže nikdy v oněch "všech ostatních případech" nahradit název zeměpisný, protože na rozdíl od něj přechodný charakter, ignoruje historickou kontinuitu státu a jeho funkce je tak limitována pouze na aktuální státní subjekt. Jeho užívání bez časového omezení je nesprávné, matoucí a nepraktické a z tohoto pohledu vůbec nezáleží na tom, zda a v jakém významu byl či nebyl jeho zeměpisný ekvivalent užíván dříve, neb jeho definice je dnes jasně vymezena i přes všechny snahy ji zpochybnit. Významy slov se mění a je otázkou úzu či institucionalizace významu, jak je chápat. V tomto případě tak bylo učiněno již v roce 1993 a revokace problematiky je zcela irelevantní. Česko je jasně definováno jako Čechy + Morava + Slezsko a je tedy názvem celého státu.




Je záhadou, proč česká reprezentace nenese daleko spíše nelibě, že její "ČR" resp. "CR" (nejspíše pro ještě větší zmatek, neb "CR" je dvoumístný ISO kód Kostariky) je jediným kontinentálním evropským státem, který zeměpisný název neužívá. Ať je tomu tak z jakéhokoli důvodu - lokálně patriotistického ("hnutí" Moravané, Za Moravu, Naša Morava apod.) či kvaziestetického - každý z nich není ničím jiným, než pocitovým, subjektivním a krátkozrakým hlediskem, ačkoli název státu by měl splňovat především objektivní kriteria srozumitelnosti, jasnosti a přehlednosti. Řečeno s Mathesiem, v jazyce je nutno učinit zjednodušení takového druhu, aby s předmětem bylo možno nadále pracovat. Tuto potřebu název Česko, resp.anglicky Czechia, beze zbytku splňuje a je zcela lhostejně, zda se mi líbí nebo nelíbí, protože státu slouží v pozitivním slova smyslu překlenutím a stmelením jeho nejrůznějších podob na historické přímce. 


Jak by to ostatně vypadalo s prezentací drtivé většiny států (tedy těch, na jejichž území se v historii vystřídalo vícero nejrůznějších společensko-politických formací), které by z podobně malicherných důvodů lpěly na příležitostných pojmenováních? Samozřejmě zcela zmateně, tedy tak, jak je vnímám v důsledku oné hlouposti stát náš. Zavedený subjekt potřebuje ve vlastním zájmu disponovat jednoduchou značkou (a tou je jméno - stejně jako u osoby - v první řadě), která ho představuje jako transparentní a stabilní. Stát, který bude měnit název při každé změně politického systému či státoprávního uspořádání (ten byl u nás změněn za 20.století devětkrát, ačkoli se jedná stále o jednu a tutéž sídelně-historickou jednotku), bude zcela logicky chápán jako nerozvinutý a nestabilní a bude trpět mlhavostí či nerozpoznatelností své značky, tedy jakési základní vizitky s příslušnými následky, včetně negativních důsledků ekonomických.

Časté výmluvy založené na obecně akceptovaných mýtech, například že český název je vytvořen uměle, anglický se může s něčím plést a mnoho dalších, se nejen nezakládají na pravdě a lze je snadno a rychle odmítnout příslušnou argumentací, ale především jsou vzhledem k podstatě problému irelevantní. I kdyby je totiž nebylo možné vyvrátit, připravujeme se o možnost vystupovat jako stálá, kontinuální a nezpochybnitelná státní jednotka, historicky a geograficky, vnitřně i navenek nezávislá na politických a společenských proměnách.




Vědomí nefunkčnosti prezentace státu v podobě kostrbatého „Made in the Czech Republic“ a současně neochota k přímému postoji vedly až k zoufalému nápadu reanimovat značku „Made in Czechoslovakia“. Tento pokus byl nejen projevem diletantismu, neboť člověk s minimální znalostí mezinárodního práva by takový návrh jen stěží mohl vyslovit, ale především ukázkou „výšin“, jichž může dosáhnout švejkovská absurdita ve snaze problém nikoli vyřešit, ale bezbolestně, ač krkolomně a slabomyslně obejít.

Je častým zvykem operovat současnou existencí států, které jednoslovný název nepoužívají, z čehož je mechanicky vyvozováno, že ani náš stát jej nepotřebuje. Jakkoli několik takových mezi téměř dvěma sty státy ve světě najdeme, rozhodně nemohou představovat žádný argument, podporující takové tvrzení. Státy jako Dominikánská či Středoafrická republika geografický název nepoužívají především proto, že na rozdíl od nás žádný NEMAJÍ a nemají ani s naší státnosti srovnatelnou historickou kontinuitu, na níž by nesprávně (tak, jak se to děje v našem případě) mohly s patřičnou absurditou politický název aplikovat. Ti, kteří argumentují existencí a užíváním názvů jako "Spojené státy" či "Spojené království", srovnávají nesrovnatelné, neb viditelnost těchto zemí na politické i zeměpisné mapě je v porovnání s naší nebetyčně rozdílná. Ostatně, jiné státy podobných jmen na ní nenajdete, zatímco nejrůznějších republik napočítáte přes stovku. V případě Spojených států jde současně o název, který nepředstavuje prezentaci žádného politického systému, neb slovo "stát" v sobě zahrnuje jakoukoli možnost státoprávního uspořádání a je tedy všezahrnující. 

Z uvedeného vyplývá, že odmítání zeměpisného názvu coby politicky neutrálního, v běžné řeči přirozeně aplikovatelného a univerzálně použitelného je podobně tragikomickým aktem jako přeřezávání větve, na které sedíme. Zeměpisný název je (dovolím si příměr) jako kalhoty, politický jako kabát. Kalhoty si musíte vzít vždy, abyste byl společensky přijatelný, kabát si vezmete, když je k tomu vhodná příležitost, nelze ovšem vyměnit kalhoty za kabát. To udělala naše reprezentace a je na tom vidět nejen její neschopnost se ve společnosti chovat. Subjektivní hlediska ve věci všeobecně prospěšné nemají místo a pokud jim toto místo jsme ochotni poskytnout, vypovídá to výmluvně o našem skutečném vztahu k vlastní zemi.

Vladimír Hirsch
#Czechia

Vyšlo v redakčně pozměněné podobě 24.3.2015  pod názvem
"Náš stát název Česko nutně potřebuje".

Viz Lidovky.cz - Česká pozice

LUX ATENEA: Vladimír Hirsch / Axonal Transit

LUX ATENEA WEBZINE: VLADIMIR HIRSCH “AXONAL TRANSIT”.: Quiero dar las gracias al artista checo VLADIMIR HIRSCH por su cortesía con LUX ATENEA WEBZINE al enviarme este promocional. Edición r...


I want to thank the Czech artist VLADIMIR HIRSCH for his courtesy to LUX ATENEA WEBZINE sending this promotional.

Edition: CD with booklet 4 pages 
Date: December 2014
Label: INTEGRATED MUSIC RECORDS
Reference: Catch 065
Tracklist: Axonal Transit: 1- Linear  2 -Diametric 3- Parametric  4- Gyroscopic; Craving Urania: 5 – Craving Urania
Artists: Vladimir Hirsch (keyboards, synthesizers and electronics)
Guest artists: Czech Integrated Ensemble (in the first four tracks)
Musical work: Written by Vladimir Hirsch
Artistic Design: Vladimir Hirsch
Technical data: Recorded and mixed in February 2012 (Axonal Transit) & July 2014 (Craving Urania) in Catch Arrow Studio Recordings by Vladimir Hirsch, mastered by Vojtěch Haňka



You will listen these musical compositions a thousand times: Each one. Masterpiece par excellence.

Last December 30 was released the new album by the prolific Czech artist Vladimir Hirsch entitled "Axonal Transit". Zje album was published by Integrated Music Records label (classical in his discography), "Axonal Transit" comes with impressive design created by Vladimir Hirsch himself, pictures by Martha Camarillo, printing a modernist aesthetic to the cover, enhancing its image as the advanced concept of art that has always characterized this experienced composer.

The extraordinary album "Axonal Transit" is divided into two musical sections, one homonym of over forty minutes vertebrate by four themes, in which Vladimir Hirsch incorporated the Czech Integrated Ensemble, and another one titled "Craving Urania”, a single composition of the same name that lasts more than twenty minutes.

On the road to three decades devoted body and soul to the search of beauty and sublime in musical art, "Axonal Transit" shows full spectrum of sound experimentation and innovative path by its structure and definition, which gives Vladimir Hirsch’s style that artistic pioneer halo in each new musical work. Lux Atenea Webzine musical lovers and readers may enjoy when purchasing this magnificent and glowing album destined to become a treasured collector's work prestige.

A creative flame to light new musical territories that will turn on when the theme "Linear" make us crumple inexorably into this dark abyss where everything vibrates and moves to sink further into it. A deathly journey in which we will be overwhelmed and exhausted by the immense expansion of the obscure, but the sublime greatness of contemporary music will continue on "Diametric", while this spiral colossally stands before our eyes with the majesty of the measureless, leaving the vision we had of ourselves completely distorted in "Parametric" composition, where our self will reach its progressive annulment to insignificance, therefore suffering a supreme sensory expansion in "Gyroscopic", so that time and distances lose their importance in the new existential perspective.

Then on track "Craving Urania", over 20 minute, the sound environment will radically change from dense and close to the ethereal and distant, passing from contemporary music decorated with dark-ambient experimental profile, to clearly defined industrial textures and this permanent state of instability where nothing is permanent or constant. A sound evolution within the musical avant-garde trends that are characterizing this second decade of the century, and that "Craving Urania" lofty reaches a polished sound despite its complexity when recreating this tortuous path to Chaos the eventual disappearance.

“Axonal Transit”, from Czechia, avant-garde eclecticism created by one of the great masters in contemporary and experimental music. Enjoy!!!

Felix L.Díaz
(translated by Martha Camarillo)



sobota 31. ledna 2015

Czechia - myths and facts about the short English name of the Czech Republic

Myth No. 1: Czechia is an unknown and possibly grammatically incorrect short name for the Czech Republic. Czechia is rarely used in English because native English speakers do not like to use it.

Fact: The Terminological Committee of the Czech Office for Surveying, Mapping and Cadastre officially codified Czechia in 1993 in its publication “Names of States and their Territorial Parts”. Therefore, Czechia is the grammatically correct short name of the Czech Republic and the English translation of Česko (the short name of the country in Czech). Czechia is not well known and infrequently used because the Czech state and its institutions have not used it despite recommendations issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Education in the 1990s. A short country name that is not used by the state itself and by its institutions cannot become well known and recognized abroad.

Myth No. 2: German, Russian, Chinese and other foreign languages have spontaneously used their translation of the short name Česko. However, the Czech Republic has become widespread in English-speaking countries. It is pointless to try to convince the English-speaking world about using Czechia as a short country name for the Czech Republic.

Fact: The Czechs have to start using their short country name first, after which English speakers will adopt it in a way similar to the way they adopted short country names such as Belarus, Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, Eritrea or Myanmar. These countries adopted and let the world know their proper short names. The Czechs need to do the same. Authorities of English speaking countries expressed clearly their consent.

Myth No. 3: Czechia is unofficial and has not been approved because Česko is not mentioned in the Czech constitution.

Fact:  A short country name does not have to be spelled out in the Constitution. Československo (Czechoslovakia) was not mentioned in the Czechoslovak Constitution either. Czechia is an official short (geographic name) of the country.

Myth No. 4: The name Czechia is a neologism.

Fact: The first recorded use of Czechia was in 1569 in Latin and in 1798 in English. Many other historic evidence of the use Czechia in English is from English, Australian and American press in 19th century. U.S. newspapers commonly used Czechia between 1918 and 1960 to refer to the western part of Czechoslovakia (as opposed to Slovakia, its eastern part) i.e. to the contemporary Czech Republic.

Myth No. 5: Czechia is not a word. It sounds strange.

Fact: Czechia is originally derived from Latin, which is common for numerous other country names in English, such as Austria, Australia, Croatia, Virginia, California, Indonesia, Slovakia, Latvia, Colombia and many more, also including Czech geographic names such as Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia. Czechia might sound strange to some people but so do numerous geographic names derived from foreign languages that are commonly used in English, such as Idaho, Utah, Massachusetts, Lithuania, Zimbabwe, and Belarus.

Myth No. 6: A short geographic name (Czechia) is unnecessary. A political name (the Czech Republic) is sufficient.

Fact: The political name of a country is transient and ignores the historic continuity of a given state territory because it is limited only to the existing state form. In the case of the Czech Republic, it is incorrect to use its political name for various state forms that had existed on its territory before 1993. As such, the political name can never fully replace a permanent geographic name that does not change in response to changing state forms in a particular territory. The use of a contemporary political name for a period before the existence of the current state form is incorrect and impractical. The need for a short name is demonstrated by the fact that the Czech Republic is often erroneously shortened to Czech, Czech rep., CR, C. Rep. or Czecho. In many cases, foreigners continue to use the name Czechoslovakia, although the country has not existed since 1993, and even Czech businessmen have attempted to restore the brand “Made in Czechoslovakia” since “Made in Czech Republic” has failed to become a familiar brand around the world.

Myth No. 7: Czechia is an inappropriate and imprecise historical name because the Czech state had not used it in the past and has used different names instead.

Fact:  Other countries, such as Egypt, Greece and Poland, use short geographic names despite the fact that they experienced major territorial changes in the past and had various names throughout their history. Being a neutral country name, Czechia can be used in historic, cultural and spiritual contexts. The transparency and relative simplicity of a short country name will facilitate its international acceptance.

Myth No. 8: There are other countries that exclusively use political names without any problems. Examples include the Dominican Republic or the Central African Republic.

Fact: Although that is true, the vast majority of countries use short geographic names. The Dominican Republic and the Central African Republic are the only two countries in the entire world that do not have readily available short names. With Czechia being standardized and readily available as a short name, the Czech Republic is not the same case. Furthermore, the history of Czech statehood is much longer than its republican political system. Czechia can be applied throughout the entire history of Czech statehood and irrespective of its actually existing political system. 

Myth No. 9: The name change from the Czech Republic to Czechia would be too expensive and overall harmful by interrupting the continuity of the Czech Republic. The Czechs need to worry about much more important problems than their short country name in English.

Fact: No change in the country name is involved since the Czech Republic as a political name remains in place and unchanged. The Czech Republic will still be used in situations such as matters of national and international diplomatic protocol and international treaties. It is more appropriate to use Czechia in situations when other countries use their short names. The introduction and the use of Czechia instead of the Czech Republic in these situations can be done gradually with no or minimum expense during the update of the country’s promotional materials. Any additional expense will pay for itself in the form of increased international recognition of the country because of its clear and unambiguous name, including its international brand name “Made in Czechia”. 

Myth No. 10: Czechia has the same meaning as Bohemia. Czechia thus excludes the regions of Moravia and (Czech) Silesia from the Czech state.

Fact: The same wrong argument can be made that the Czech Republic does not include Moravia and (Czech) Silesia in its name and the same could be said about the Czech lands. Czechia covers exactly the same geographic area as the Czech Republic and it is therefore composed of Bohemia, Moravia and (Czech) Silesia. Although Czechia was originally also used as a synonym for Bohemia, it has not been used in this sense since the beginning of the 20th century. Since then Czechia has been used to denote the entire territory inhabited by the Czech speaking population, which is composed of three historic Czech lands: Bohemia, Moravia and (Czech) Silesia.

Myth No. 11: Czechia is less representative than the Czech Republic and it is confusing because it is ambiguous.

Fact: Undemocratic and authoritarian regimes around the world have frequently included “republic” in their country names in order to increase their legitimacy. As such, the term “republic” has lost its former glamour during the 20th century. Czechia [ˈtʃɛki.ə] is unambiguous in both spoken and written English. As a matter of fact, the Czech Republic [tʃɛk rɪˈpʌb.lɪk] is much more ambiguous than Czechia since the term “Czech” [tʃɛk] is pronounced the same way as check and cheque, which have several meanings as a noun and verb in spoken English, while “republic” is ambiguous because it is used in political names of the majority of countries.

Myth No. 12: Czechia ˈtʃɛki.əˈ can by pronounced as ˈtʃɛtʃi.əˈ

Fact: If this was the case then “Czech” [tʃɛk] could be pronounced as [tʃɛtʃ]. There are numerous words in English (286 to be exact) in which “ch” is pronounced as [k] and not [tʃ] and are pronounced similarly as “Czech” [tʃɛk], such as architect, ache, anarchy, anchor, chemistry, chaos, epoch, and mechanism. English pronunciation is variable and English speakers simply have to learn the pronunciation of particular words, such as blood – mood or head – steam.

Myth No. 13: Czechia is an unsuitable short name for the Czech Republic because it can be easily confused with Chechnya.

Fact: Poor knowledge of country names or geography by some people should not be a reason for refusing a particular country name. There are numerous countries with more similar names than Czechia/Chechnya, such as Austria/Australia, Iran/Iraq, India/Indonesia, Mali/Malawi, Niger/Nigeria, Gambia/Zambia, Slovakia/Slovenia and even Georgia/Georgia (a U.S. state). None of these countries has decided to give up its short name and use its political name exclusively because of a possible confusion with another country (region). Czechia can be confused with Chechnya in the same way the Czech Republic can be confused with the Chechen Republic. The chance of actual confusion of Czechia and Chechnya during various diplomatic, international scientific or sports events is almost zero since Chechnya is not an independent country and does not act as a sovereign entity at the international scale.  

Myth No. 14: Czechia is too similar to German „Tschechei“ that was used by Nazi Germany as a derogatory name for the occupied Czech territory during the Second World War.

Fact: Czechia is unrelated to the German term „Tschechei“ … and these two terms are pronounced differently in English and German. Although Germans had used “Tschechei” before the Nazi period, Czechia had been used many years before Germans first used  “Tschechei”. Today, “Tschechei” is rarely used in Germany because Germans use „Tschechien“. If “Tschechei” is used it does not need to be necessarily viewed as a pejorative term since it was created in a similar way as names for other countries in German, such as Slowakei and Türkei.

Myth No. 15: The selection of the proper short country name must be the outcome of a democratic public discussion.

Fact: The November 2014 statement of the Terminological Committee of the Czech Office for Surveying, Mapping and Cadastre states: “According to the article 3 of Act 1994/200 on Land Surveying, the standardization of names of settlement and non-settlement units is a land surveying activity in public interest and its results and recommendations should be followed by national and local state institutions. The position of the Terminological Committee of the Czech Office for Surveying, Mapping and Cadastre, an advisory authority of the Czech Office for Surveying, Mapping and Cadastre for the codification of country names, on the use of the name Česko and its foreign language variants (Czechia, Tschechien, Tchéquie, Chequia…) is positive. This position on the use of one-word name Česko and its equivalents in foreign languages has not changed since 1993. The experts unequivocally recommended the use of “Czechia” in English and its variants in other language (Tschechien, Tchéquie, Chequia etc.). This is not an opinion but the outcome of the process of standardization.” – This decision about the name “Czechia” has been made by those who are qualified by law to make it.

Vladimír Hirsch, Petr Pavlínek, Zdeněk Kukal
© Czechia Civic Initiative, Praha, December 2014


středa 14. ledna 2015

Vladimír Hirsch - Axonal Transit

Konceptuální album, obsahující titulní čtyřdílnou skladbu pro elektroniku, smyčce, dechové a bicí nástroje (2012, op.92, č.1-4, označovanou též jako autorovu pátou symfonii a občas uváděnou s tímto podtitulem) a rozsáhlou kompozici "Craving Urania" (2014, op.95, č.5) pro integrované techniky, založenou na podobných skladebných a technologických postupech. Hudebníci: Vladimír Hirsch - elektronika, klávesové nástroje, syntezátory, integrovaná technika; participace: Czech Integrated Ensemble - smyčce, žestě, perkuse. 


Jedná se o experimentální práce, založené na variacích časového a prostorového prolínání hudebních témat s významnou úlohou ambientních struktur v roli jejich ukotvujícího, jakkoli vlajícího prvku. Použity metody lineárního, diametrického, parametrického či aleatorického členění dílčích motivů, jak napovídají i názvy jednotlivých částí hlavní skladby. 
Jan Blanický

Objednání


Vladimír Hirsch - Axonal Transit


The album “Axonal Transit” by Vladimír Hirsch embraces two works: A four-part composition with the same name, op.92, created in 2012 (tracks 1-4), considered and occasionally subtitled as "Symphony no.5", and an extensive epic track “Craving Urania”, op.95, from 2014 (track no.5), for electronics, strings, brasses and percussions manipulated by integrated techniques. Musicians: Vladimír Hirsch – electronics, keyboards, synthesizers, mix, integrated sound manipulation techniques; participation of Czech Integrated Ensemble - strings, brasses, percussions. 



Both of compostions are experimental works, based on similar compositional and technological processes, consisting in temporal and spatial variations blending of musical themes with an important role of ambient structures in the position of anchoring, however billowing matrix. There are used methods of antithetical, parametric or aleatoric articulation of sub-themes, which are more expressed in the title project. This is why both compositions form naturally an organic whole, notwithstanding the fact they remain thematically different. Released: December 30, 2014

Jan Blanický & Martha Camarillo

Album order



REVIEWS :
Lux Atenea (in Spanish)
Lurkers Realm (in Portuguese)