Bohumil Fidler (May 27, 1860 - June 2, 1944) was a Czech

Czech people

Czechs, or Czech people are a western Slavic people of Central Europe, living predominantly in the Czech Republic. Small populations of Czechs also live in Slovakia, Austria, the United States, the United Kingdom, Chile, Argentina, Canada, Germany, Russia and other countries...

 composer

Composer

A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...

, choirmaster, choral conductor and music teacher. He was born in Příbram

Príbram

Příbram is a city in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic with a population of 35,147. The city is located on the Litavka river and the foothills of Brdy, 60 kilometers south-west of Prague, the country's capital...

, where he lived and worked his entire life.

Biography

Fidler was a foremost figure in the musical life of Příbram and the surrounding region. Upon completing his education, he taught at the local teachers college until 1889, and subsequently served as choir director at St. Jacob's Church.
For more than 15 years Fidler was also the choirmaster of Příbram's "Lumir-Dobromila" choral association. Additionally, he founded the Příbram Philharmonic Orchestra and was its conductor from 1908-1913. He died in Příbram in 1944.

His autobiography, Můj život a vzpomínky (My Life and Memories), published in 1935,
is noteworthy for its numerous recollections of his musical friendship with Czech composer Antonín Dvořák

Antonín Dvorák

Antonín Leopold Dvořák was a Czech composer of late Romantic music, who employed the idioms of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia. Dvořák’s own style is sometimes called "romantic-classicist synthesis". His works include symphonic, choral and chamber music, concerti, operas and many...

, as well as his experiences with many other lesser known Czech musicians. An annotated English translation of these memoirs has recently been published by the Dvořák Society for Czech and Slovak Music .

Style

Bohumil Fidler's compositions include two Missa brevi, two Pastorale Masses, a celebratory Mass for mixed choir, soloists, orchestra and organ, and numerous smaller works for chorus as well as songs for solo voice. For the stage he wrote music for two fairy tales: Mikeš Lumidřevo and Zvířátka a Petrovští. His Slavonic Waltz was composed for the Příbram Philharmonic Orchestra; he also wrote 20 funeral marches for military band.

Selected works

Church music:

• Missa solemnis in D major (1901) - performed in 1903
• Missa pastoralis II. (1937)
• Missa brevis
• Slovenská vánoční mše

He wrote also compositions for mixed choirs and works for solo voice and solo violin.