Mailbox
This week in Mailbox: a new frequency; Radio Prague’s new series From the Archives; a Czech verse on an old pillow; what goes on in Radio Prague’s studios when the clocks change; Antonin Dvorak. Listeners quoted: Brian Kendall, Mary Culik, Colin Law, Jim Jennings.
Another week has gone by and it’s time again to browse through your letters and e-mails. Welcome to Mailbox.
First though, we have one technical announcement to make: Radio Prague has added some temporary frequencies to our winter broadcast schedule list. On top of the frequencies announced earlier, in November and December you can also listen to us in central and western parts of North America at 0200 UTC on 5995 kHz. If any listeners catch those broadcasts, we’d really appreciate your reception reports.
Now onto your mail: Brian Kendall is writing from the United Kingdom.
“The reason for this e-mail is to express my appreciation of your new series, ‘From the Archives.’ It has got off to a fascinating start and what is coming sounds as though it should also make for very good radio. I sometimes wonder why broadcasters do not make more use of archive material and now, lo and behold, you are doing exactly that. History is made alive through these old recordings. Congratulations!”
This e-mail came from Mary Culik who lives in Michigan.
“My husband's Moravian grandmother emigrated here in the early 1900s. She sewed a pillow with a Czech saying on it, and we'd like to know what it says. Here are the words: Kde domov muj, kde vlast je ma. I hope the words are spelled correctly. If you would help me, I'd be most appreciative.”
Colin Law from New Zealand sent in an e-mail with queries regarding daylight saving time in the Czech Republic, including this one about Radio Prague broadcasts.
“What of Radio Prague's international service, broadcasting to numerous time zones? Does Radio Prague have one hour silence on Sunday morning to allow the clock to catch up? Or do you record the first 2am to 3am programme and replay it for the second 2am to 3am session?”
When the clocks change, the broadcasts run back to back according to the old schedule until 06:27 Prague time. The change occurs during the broadcast pause between 06:27 CET and 07:27 CET. The pause is an hour shorter in the spring when the clocks move forward – that is there is no pause at all – while it is two hours long in the autumn. So rather than at 2 am, for us here at Radio Prague the change takes place at 06:27 which either becomes 07:27 or 05:27 – so to speak.
Jim Jennings is writing from Chicago about his favourite composer Antonin Dvorak:
“So often I think of how grateful I am that your beloved hero, Antonin Dvorak, lived and gave us so many wonderful works of art. I believe that music, great music, can end wars because it communicates hope and reminds us that we must live together. Thank you for helping us to remember him and to learn about him. I hope to come, one day, to Prague. I will walk the streets he walked and I will see the museum. I will hope to hear the Czech Philharmonic and I will look for the Dvorak visage in the faces of the people. We had him, here, in Iowa and New York, but he came home to you. Dvorak is one of the best reasons for the strong friendship between Americans and Czechs! Please send us more heroes!”
Thank you, Jim, for writing in. And precisely those kinds of heroes, if I may say so, are the subject of our monthly quizzes here on Radio Prague.
This time we are looking for the name of a Moravian-born American economist and political scientist. Some of his most important contributions to global economic thinking include his theories of business cycles and development, entrepreneurship, his theory of growth, and creative destruction.
Please send us your suggestions by the end of the month to [email protected] or Radio Prague, 12099 Prague. There will be small prizes for four of you whose names will be announced at the beginning of next month. Until next week, thanks for listening and please, keep those letters coming.
