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The relation of music, trance and spirituality on the example of Czech psytrance scene - research on spiritual dimension in the perspective of musicians
Hvězdová, Zuzana ; Kratochvíl, Matěj (advisor) ; Kreisslová, Sandra (referee)
The genre of electronic dance music, psychedelic trance, is considered by its established scene as a meaningful source of personal spirituality. This thesis explores creator's perspective of this repetitive electronic dance music (typically DJs), thus complementing previous studies dealing primarily with the spiritual dimension in listener's perspective. Using own fieldwork and interviews, it describes specific socio-cultural conditions of Czech psytrance scene and traces the emic creator's interpretation in relations with music, trance and spirituality. Key words: DJ - electronic dance music - ethnomusicology - musical subculture - non- ordinary states of consciousness - psychedelic experience - psychedelic trance - psytrance - rave culture - spirituality - trance - transcendence
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"Being vnye": Mylène Farmer and French Pop Music in Post-Soviet Russia
Kaznacheeva, Anna ; Havelková, Tereza (advisor) ; Kratochvíl, Matěj (referee)
The thesis examines how French popular music is experienced in post-Soviet Russia based on the Russian reception of the contemporary French singer Mylène Farmer. Farmer has remained popular in Russia ever since her songs and music videos entered the country following the collapse of the USSR. Producing complex and intellectually demanding audiovisual projects, the French artist attracts the audience aspiring to be perceived as today's Russian intellectual elite. The following analysis proves that while popular music is marginalised inside Russian cultural hierarchies, highbrow French songs tend to function as acknowledged sources of cultural capital. The thesis outlines the history of the Russian reception of French (popular) culture to show that Farmer's success in the country is closely connected with traditional Russian fascination with France. Drawing on the concept of the Imaginary West developed by the anthropologist Alexei Yurchak, the research follows how Russian attitude towards the West has shaped - and has been shaped by - the reception of French popular music. Key words: Mylène Farmer, popular music, videoclip, French pop, Russia, Imaginary West
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Music as an Attribute of the Ethnic Identity of African Americans
Procházková, Eva ; Tyllner, Lubomír (advisor) ; Blüml, Jan (referee) ; Kratochvíl, Matěj (referee)
The objective of the dissertation is a detailed study of the interactions between music and ethnic identity of a selected ethnic group - African Americans during several historical periods, and the use of information obtained from literary sources as research starting point for fieldwork. The main research question is: Music and its role in the formation of an African American ethnic identity today. The introductory chapters of the dissertation give an overview of basic concepts and theories and briefly clarify the terms African Americans, African American music, and ethnic identity in terms of their interconnection. The main part of the theoretical part of the study focuses on the role of music in the process of an African American ethnic identity formation and is divided into five chapters, each of which discusses interactions between music and ethnic identity in different historical periods, for example during slavery times in North America and the Reconstruction of the South, during the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s and The Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s, or in the so-called post-soul era of the 1980s and 1990s. The summary of the existing knowledge from literary sources serves as a theoretical basis for a two-month qualitative fieldwork research conducted in Chicago, USA in...
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Folklore Movement as a Bridge between Folk Music and Other Worlds
Kratochvíl, Matěj
Folklore movement in the second half of the 20th century played several roles. It was a tool of propaganda but at the same time a means to preserving tradition or original art form. One of its roles, however, remains somewhat aside the main focus. As the original forms of folk music and dances were disappearing, the revival of them through performance by folk ensembles became the main, and often the only way of bringing the traditions to wider public. This was contributed to by interconnection of folk movement with mass media and recording industry. Through these channels the folk music reached musicians of various genres, who were thus introduced to the sound of folk music from Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia. Based on their impressions, some of these musicians then decided to include the folk components in their own compositions. The result is a number of projects and recordings, where folk elements are mixed with jazz, rock, ballads or electronic music. The paper attempts to present possible answers to the question to what extent the folklore movement, as an institutionalised form of reviving traditional culture, influenced acceptance of this culture in other areas of music. The research, which forms the base of this contribution, analyses recordings and presents interviews of musicians from varied areas and of different generations.
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Catholic Praise and Worship Music and the "Rhytmic Song" in Czechoslovakia between the 1960s to 1980s
Holcová, Alžběta ; Zdrálek, Vít (advisor) ; Kratochvíl, Matěj (referee)
This diploma thesis is concerned with the phenomenon of catholic popular sacred music, locally known as "rhytmical" songs, in Czechoslovakia, to be more precise in present territory of the Czech republic between 1960s - 1980s. I try to cover the whole context of the "rhythmical" songs, not only in connection with the liturgy, but also with the whole religious life mainly of the younger generation of believers. Firstly, the thesis is concerned with the situation in Czechoslovakia in the end of 1960s, where the reforms in the international Church and domestic political landscape joined together and the activation of the local Church and religious life with its musical aspects were reinforced. Czechslovakia had opened to the "western" influence of the Christian popular music - appearing in the whole Christian world that time - which was partially being developed in the local Church. Secondly, the thesis is concerned with the Czechoslovak context and the term "rhythmical" song, which is the most frequent term related to the Christian popular music in Czechoslovak sources. This term describes not only the specific form of the liturgical music, but also the whole musical and religious culture of the life of its participants and consumers. The thesis introduces the development of the "rhythmical" songs in...
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The role of music in the revitalization and preservation of the Ruthenian language and culture (a case study in the NE of Slovakia)
Tomková, Jana ; Kratochvíl, Matěj (advisor) ; Šatava, Leoš (referee)
The presented thesis is focused on the role of music in ethnolinguistic revitalization activities. The aim of the work is to map and analyse the relationship between music and language in the environment of the ethnolinguistic minority in Slovakia. Ethnolinguistic revitalization includes efforts to revive and maintain a disappearing language in a minority ethnic group and strengthen the ethnic identity of members of the ethnic group. We encounter such activities more and more often in the world. In this thesis, the author examines the use of music and songs within the private and public sphere of the life of members of an ethnic minority, the role and function of music in the culture of a particular ethnic minority, and the degree of influence of music on the ethnolinguistic revitalization movement. Specifically, the mentioned tendencies are examined among the ethnic Ruthenians in Slovakia, where there has been an observable linguistic shift towards the Slovak language. For the purpose of the work, field research was also carried out, from which the obtained material was properly processed, analysed and interpreted. At the same time, during the research, the broader social and historical context was taken into account and compared with the current situation and the conclusions of previous research....
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Soundscape of Prague Psychedelic Guitar Rock Scene
Poděbradský, Oldřich ; Jurková, Zuzana (advisor) ; Stavělová, Daniela (referee) ; Kratochvíl, Matěj (referee)
Since its beginnings in the 1960s, psychedelic rock music and "psychedelic sound" sound has become an integral part of rock and Western popular music. This scope of this PhD thesis covers the performance of psychedelic rock music in Prague, Czech Republic, i.e. Prague's psychedelic soundscape (Shelemay 2006). The structure of the thesis is loosely inspired by the scapes concepts as defined by Arjun Appadurai (1996). First, it summarizes the development of the "psychedelic sound" and employs ethnographic research in order to elucidate what this sound means to its agents within the studied soundscape. Subsequently, it proceeds to discover who the agents of this scene are, how the roles of the performers and the audience blend together, how the agents understand their music within the multi-genre context of the scene, and what the phenomenon of psychedelic rock music means to the agents - both in terms of its sonic elements and the "ritual" (Turner 1969) aspect of live performances, often associated with the use of mind-altering substances. The aim of the thesis is to describe the psychedelic soundscape of Prague as a large organic network based on reciprocal friendship and support, rather than as a mere set of music groups that refer to themselves or are referred to as psychedelic. Key words:...
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Genesis, the television oratorio. Audio-visual analysis within the context of Czech television opera
Ledvinka, Martin ; Havelková, Tereza (advisor) ; Kratochvíl, Matěj (referee)
The present thesis proposes a deconstructive analysis of Czech television oratorio Genesis (director Pavel Hobl, music Zbigniew Wiszniewsky, Czechoslovak Television and Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen, 1969). Using concepts of voice-object and acousmêtre, this study examines music of the oratorio as an important narrative feature of the audio-visual object. The text interprets the narrative of the oratorio as a crituque of logocentrism and rationalism of modern society. Beside the interpretative part, the study duscusses history and preception of the genre of television opera in Czechoslovakia from early 60s to 1989. Two concepts of the production of television opera are introduced: first, a concept of television opera as a mediator of an existing operatic work, or as means of cultural education of "mass audience"; secondly, television opera is called to represent a new art form using specific television means. These concepts are found in texts by Czech music theorists and journalists of 60s, when the disputation about television opera in Czech journals culminated. A list of television operas produced by Czechoslovak television until 1989 is attached.
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Credit Default Swap
Kratochvíl, Matěj ; Chudoba, Martin (advisor) ; Hurt, Jan (referee)
of the Bachelor Thesis Title: Credit Default Swap Author: Matěj Kratochvíl Department: Department of Probability and Mathematical Statistics Supervisor: Mgr. et Mgr. Martin Chudoba Abstract: The thesis deals with basic credit derivative - credit default swap. The aim of the first part is to explain its mechanism, contract elements, settlement, and to show practical examples of investment. The second part attempts to clarify how the arbitrage possibilities between bond market and credit derivatives market drive credit default swap prices to a certain range. Further there is presented a simple pricing model and possibilities of its exploitation. Examples are provided for better understanding. The third part focuses on counterparty default risk in credit default swap. Keywords: CDS, default intensity, credit risk
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