This utterly joyous Mozart flashmob on the streets of Prague is why we need music in our lives
26 May 2021, 12:29
The magic of Mozart finds its way onto the streets of Prague, and builds into a joyous union of music and cultures.
In 2021, the musical flashmob is still going strong. Perhaps there’s something about the collective joy of music-making that we’re all longing for, as we sit behind our small screens in these pandemic times.
This wonderful film comes from Explore Azerbaijan and the young musicians of Prague Film Orchestra, conducted by Jiří Korynta.
It begins in Republic Square in Prague, capital of the Czech Republic, where a violin, cello and flute trio are playing the ‘Largo’ from Dvorák’s Symphony No. 9 ‘From the New World’.
A boy approaches the ensemble holding a tar, a popular Azerbaijani instrument and member of the lute family. Wanting to pick the energy up a little, he starts playing Mozart’s famous melody ‘Rondo alla Turca’.
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Watch this utterly joyous Mozart flashmob by Prague Film Orchestra and Explore Azerbaijan
Up for the challenge, the trio join him in a four-part rendition of the classical ditty.
Gradually, as every section of the orchestra begins to join the party, the flashmob attracts a crowd of delighted onlookers.
If you watch it all the way through, you’ll see conductor Jiří Korynta finally join the party, just in time to cue in the crashing timpani drums.
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The performance was set up in 2014 by the Azerbaijan Student Network, an organisation which promotes the cooperation of young Azerbaijani people with their European counterparts, in celebration of International Music Day and the 1st European Games in Baku, Azerbaijan.
And the boy who joined the trio at the beginning was a 15-year-old Azerbaijani refugee and gifted musician. What a brilliant talent, and a powerful way to show music’s abiding power to bridge cultures and build bonds.
The video has had nearly a million views on Facebook – some from those who were actually there on the day, in Republic Square.
“[We] experienced this when we visited Prague with our German friends several years ago. That was a wonderful trip. Great memories,” one user wrote.
Another who attended the flashmob said: “Wish I was there again! Prague is an extremely cultured city – especially ‘the Old Town’. In Prague it is normal to turn a corner and see a cello or violin being played late at night or a woman singing opera (which I did see while there!).”
