Karel Odstrčil
Karel Odstrcil's road towards composing was not typical ond he entered the musical career rather late, though he hails from a region with rich folk music traditions (born 1930 in Valaske Mezirici) and though his family literally lived music.
In his home he was very well initiated to musical practice and his natural musicality added to musical renome of his family. Therefrom he went to Ostrava to study at the Mining College (1954), he acquired the degree of mining engineer. Then he worked as teacher of mining subjects at industrial school in Pribram. During his student years in Ostrava he also studied music with important experts such as Josef Kysela (piano), Jaroslav Gotthard and Rudolf Vasats (conducting) and Josef Schreiber (composition). He complemented theoretical studies with practical activity of conductor of the Ostrava Student Ensemble.
In 1967 he started to work in the newly-established Studio of Experimental Music of the Czechoslovak Radio in Plzen, he stood at its origin. He is one of the first pioneers of the development of electronic music in Czechoslovakia: it can be demonstrated by remarkable creative results of his special-purpose compositions (audiovisual programmes for exhibitions, museums, trade fairs, etc.) as well as autonomous ones. Most important composition of this kind is the "Wax Figures Cabinet" (1967-72) in synthetic compositions Integration (1972), a quadraphonic composition, combining the sounds of symphony orchestra, mixed chorus ond vocal soli with electroacoustic music. Besides electroacoustics, the author is also interested in experiments combining sound and light (use of space-developed laser beam and a sound source) - therefrom dates his cooperation with the Brno Via Lucis group.
- Electroacoustic music
- Integration - quadrophonic musical programme for the Czechoslovak exhibition ot the Brno International Engineering Fair (1972) 30'
- Wax Figures Cabinet - cycle of compositions: Einstein, Sorge, Curie Kafka Gandhi, Amundsen, Hemingwoy, Louis (1967-72) 78'
- Fiction I (1970) 11'
- Fiction II (1974) 11'
- The Urban Tower four chime programmes (The Spring, The Summer, The Autumn, The Winter) to inougurate the tower clock in Kosice (1977), r (under preparation) 110'
- Ex Plzen - music for an exhibition of the same name in Plzen (1978, 1979, 1980) Maxwell (1978)
- Homo Sapicus - multivision music (1980) 30'
http://www.musica.cz/comp/odstrcil.htm
See also: Czech_Republic#Electroacoustic_and_experimental_music.2C_sound_art
