With many historical sites, museums, and churches closing their doors during the COVID-19 pandemic, many institutions are turning to the internet to share art, buildings and even music concerts. Among the many Czech cultural institutions, St Wenceslas Cathedral in Olomouc and The National Museum in Prague are offering virtual tours. While The 75th annual Prague Spring Music Festival will not be paying to a live audience, they will be broadcasted on Czech Radio and Czech Television and can be attended online!
The St Wenceslas Cathedral is made strides to bring a 3D virtual tour of the cathedral that was built in 1141. The 3D virtual reality tour will be accompanied by commentary, available in English. While the building has been rebuilt and remodeled throughout the years, the Cathedral stands tall and has become an integral part of the cities skyline. In the Virtual Tour, you will be able to explore the Neo-Gothic style and the original medieval layout.
For a VR 360 video tour of St Wenceslas Catherdral go here. Thanks to Petr Sanetrnik, who created the 3D virtual reality tour for the Olomouc Museum of Art, we are able to access the St Wenceslas in a virtual tour and in VR 360 video.
“We’ve developed special technology that enables us to generate virtual reality content using a special 360° video. And we thought it would be great now to showcase the Olomouc monument, St. Wenceslas Cathedral – and to really do it on a world-class level. “When you look down from the top of the tower, you really feel like you are there. You may even feel dizzy. We’ve also made a version in English, for the whole world, and for example, Japanese tourists can take a walk through the cathedral on YouTube.” -Petr Sanetrnik
In addition, the annual International Music Festival, Prague Spring is also going to reach audiences through live broadcast. This year the festival will feature around ten concerts and will be broadcasted on Czech Radio and scheduled on Czech Television. It has been revealed, there will be a vocal performance by bass-baritone Adam Plachetka, and will perform Franz Schubert’s Winterreise. There will also be an exclusive performance by Canadian violinist James Ehnes for Prague Spring audiences from the United States.
Festival director Roman Belor says “It is difficult to foresee which restrictive measures will still be in place at the time this year’s Prague Spring is due to start and, for understandable reasons, we cannot expect a mandatory standpoint from the relevant bodies of the state administration. The Prague Spring has therefore decided to seek an alternative so that music may continue to bring hope to its listeners during this troubling situation,”.
The alternative format for the Prague Spring festival will be broadcasted from five different concert halls in Prague and one in Brno. The concert is also going to be available for free on the Prague Spring website. Additional virtual reality tours of Czech landmarks, Cathedrals and more check out the Czech Tourism website.
During these uncertain and isolating times, many are searching for ways to stay connected with the world. Many Czech institutions are offering different cultural escapes for anyone to explore, learn, and share!
Written by Karlin Lojo