The reign of King Wenceslas (Václav) IV, House of Luxembourg, was one of economic and political crisis, as well of the Great Schism in the Catholic Church.
Meanwhile, a young priest was gaining popularity amongst the public for his views on feudal oppression and ridding the Church of moral decay. Jan Hus (1369-1415) was tired of feudal oppression and strove to translate the liturgy from Latin to Czech. He also believed in purging the Church of its over-indulgences and, instead, returning to a vow of poverty. Hus preached at the Bethlehem Chapel in Prague, which became the center of the reformation movement.
His beliefs of simplifying the Church applied to music, as well. The Hussite movement believed in unison folk singing, with Hus composing and arranging songs for his congregation. Remember, Gregorian chant reigned supreme and polyphony was garnering favor, but the Hussite movement stalled the advancement of sacred Latin music.
Jan Hus, Reformer
Jan Hus at the Council of Constance; 19th century painting by Karl Friedrich Lessing
“Ye Warrior of God” in the Jistebnice Hymnbook
The Hussite Revolution
In 1414, Hus was summoned to the Council of Constance to defend his beliefs and teachings. Ultimately, he was deemed a heretic, and he was burned at the stake on July 6, 1415. With his death, Hus’s followers openly rebelled against the Church, overthrowing church institutions.
The Hussite Revolution and subsequent wars lasted for nearly two decades, officially ending in 1434.
Hussite music expressed anger their oppressors, whether at home or abroad. The first known revolutionary songs in music were born out of the Hussite Revolution, as seen in three important hymns:
-”Rise, Oh Rise, Great City of Prague” (“Povstaň, povstaň, veliké město Pražské”) was a call to arms, encouraging the attack of enemy armies.
-”Children, Let us Meet Together” was a song of thanksgiving that welcomed home warriors from the battlefield.
-”Ye Warriors of God” (“Ktož jsú Boží bojovníci”) was sung in unison by warriors entering battle. Composers such as Dvořák, Smetana, and Pavel Haas quoted it in their music centuries later.
These songs come from the Jistebnice Hymnbook (Jistebnický kancionál), from around the mid-15th century. This invaluable collection of 77 songs (some by Hus himself) is not only the single surviving source of the Hussite liturgy in existence, but it also tells us much about Czech singing during the Revolution. Everything is in the Czech vernacular, and many songs folk songs are in unison. There are examples of two-part choral singing, as well, as found in “Children Young and Old.”
The music of the Hussite Revolution left an indelible mark on Czech history. In the 20th century, most Czech composers wrote a plethora of choral works and songs inspired by or based on folk songs. The genesis of this music is the Hussite Revolution and its worthy struggle for political and social justice — a topic not unfamiliar in post-WWI Czechoslovakia.
The radical Hussites were defeated in 1434; however, the Hussite denomination, or Utraquists, was confirmed at the Compact of Basel in 1436.
Vanoční zpěvy z doby husitské (Songs from the Hussite Era), Supraphon, 1997