As described by the authors,Czech Songs in Texas is a book of both recovery and celebration: recovery of forgotten histories and stories that document rich musical tradition, and celebration of lively musical performances still heard around the state of Texas. It is also an annotated collection of sixty-one songs, mostly polkas and waltzes, that go along with these dances.
The book starts with the history of the Czech settlements in rural Texas in the mid-nineteenth century, offering historical and socio-cultural explanations of the reasons for this trans-Atlantic Czech immigration (very similar to that of other Central and Eastern Europeans, like Poles, Ukrainians, etc., around the same time). The Habsburg Empire suppressed Czech language, music, dance, and other cultural expressions by elevating the German language, and Austrian culture was seen as sophisticated and elite, as opposed to that of the oppressed people.
Czech immigrants who fled to the Unites States chose the land of Texas to settle in, where they could start small family farms and plant cotton and other crops alongside their Anglo American, Mexican American, and Native American neighbors. It is important to mention that these European immigrants often faced more discrimination and segregation than their Anglo American immigrant counterparts, and they often had closer connections with the Latino farmers and ranchers.
Because Czech families often lived in isolated farm clusters or compact urban neighborhoods, the assimilation process was very slow, and thus they were able to preserve their language and culture, including its music. Soon after Czech Americans were able to accumulate some funds, they quickly turned to establishing churches, schools, and scout camps (e.g., Sokil - Falcon), newspapers (Národní noviny – People’s News; Svoboda – Freedom; Našinec – Fellow Countrymen; Vestník – Gasette, among others). When World War I started, these newspapers issued a call for all Czech Americans to help their former countrymen. Soon the communities started organizing fundraisers and charity sales, collecting donations, and sending money to their historical homeland. Charity concerts were at the center of these efforts.
In the early stages of radio and sound recording, the American music industry and music publishers tended to choose “non-ethnic” musicians to work with. Lacking interest and support in the industry, immigrant communities that wanted to listen to their own recorded music had to either import it from across the ocean or come up with grassroot initiatives; the latter soon grew into successful small businesses. Bands started popping up, touring, and playing at social events for both Czechs and non-Czechs. Polkas became widely recorded and played on the radio. The authors also report that American music genres like Zydeco, Cajun, Tejano, Western swing, and country influenced the traditional Czech tunes in rural Texas: “[Czech music] was not like it sounded in Europe; this had much more of the Southwest swing to it” (20). In addition to several of the renowned polka bands, they also highlight six prominent Texas Czech musical figures – Joe Patek, Adolph Hofner, Bill Mraz, Lee Roy Matocha, Alfred Vrazel, and Alice Sulak – to “illustrate how the changing times affected the character of the community’s music” (18-19).
Chapter 1 of the book tells how Czechs in Texas aimed to revive their culture, having the freedom of self-determination and expression, and polka dance became one of the “soft power” tools for them. “[Polka] carried a load of meaning, for it had emerged as a potent national expression of freedom, of revival of the suppressed Czech culture, and of hope for national self-determination…. Polka’s survival and thriving all these years later testifies to the power of song and dance to evoke this ethnic community’s foundational story: that the immigrants came to America because they wanted freedom, democracy, and a better life” (4).
Chapter 2 brings us back to Central Europe. In the spirit of the era, the folksong collection movement was flourishing in Czechia in the 1800s and became important in the preservation of regional song traditions, like those of Moravia and Bohemia. Also, new popular genres of song appeared, like operetta couplets, shopkeepers’ songs, and half-folk songs. This last genre of half-folk song (pololidové piseń) has not been very well defined. “Some of the songs in this category are simply variants of folk tunes, while others are new songs that possess characteristics of folk songs…. In both melody and text, half-folk songs are often considered 'folksy' rather than true 'folk'” (35).
As stated earlier, Austrian elite culture was very dominant in the Habsburg, Austrian, and then Austro-Hungarian empires. Waltz, however, was equally enjoyed by Austrians, Germans, and Czechs. The authors state that the development of Czech ballroom dances was “essential to the growth of Czech nationalism after the 1848 revolution” (39). As opposed to the Viennese waltz, “participating in a Czech ball was a way for Czechs to rediscover their own culture and speak freely with persons of like minds” (39).
Another important music genre that played a central role in the formation and dissemination of Czech nationalism is that of military wind bands, ironically, formed by the state. “Service in the Austrian military, required of Czech young men, had proven to be an excellent training program for band musicians. Upon returning home, former military musicians were able to continue using their skills by playing in local community bands” (4). The authors argue that military wind bands in Czechia were a “musical vehicle for the rise of nationalism in Czech lands under the auspices of Austria-Hungary” (40).
During World War II, Nazis controlled the music played at social occasions and on the radio in occupied Bohemia and other regions. However, they did not ban brass band and lidovka music, perhaps because the genres had sufficient German influence. Some prisoners at the concentration camps were even allowed to form bands and play the lidovka music (44).
Chapter 3 offers sheet music of sixty-one Czech songs recorded in Texas, along with a brief, half- to one-page-long history of, or the story behind, the song and the English translation of the song.
I really appreciated the Czech pronunciation guide at the beginning of the book. Even though the Czech language uses Latin characters in its alphabet, the guide is very helpful for non-Slavic language speakers. In terms of the book's structure, I would switch chapters 1 and 2: to me, such a layout would seem more logical.
Overall, Czech Songs in Texas is a great addition to the existing body of works on both Central European and diaspora studies, specifically non-West European diasporas in the United States, through the lens of music. It demonstrates the nuances of the immigrant experience of white Europeans, who, despite the stereotype of assumed privileges, faced challenges similar to those of Italian and Irish immigrants. The book also highlights the self-organization efforts of members of the immigrant community who left their homeland for political reasons, being oppressed by a dominant empire. Unable to create a free nation-state at home during the peak of the European nation-building process, these aspirations were partially embodied in the diasporic communities, with Czech polkas and waltzes as soundtracks and catalysts.
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[Review length: 1167 words • Review posted on April 29, 2024]