As Roman Válek, the orchestra’s conductor, puts it: “In our cultural context, in part due to the legacy of the National Revival, Adam Michna’s music is perceived mainly through the prism of poetic strophic songs. However, much like with Jakub Jan Ryba, these popular works don’t represent his primary creative contribution. Michna was fascinated by early Italian baroque music which he knew from his visits to Italy and Italian music performed at the Jesuit college in Jindřichův Hradec. His more complex compositions bear a striking resemblance of early Italian masters, particularly Claudio Monteverdi. Our concert directly highlights this parallel.”