R. A. Dvorský: The elegant voice of the First Republic silenced by communism
An elegant gentleman with a trademark moustache and a bow tie, R. A. Dvorský was one of the biggest stars of Czechoslovak popular music during the First Republic. Some of his songs became timeless hits, and in his heyday there was hardly anyone who did not know his name. His fame, however, later made him a target of the communist regime, which labelled him an “enemy of the people” and pushed him out of public life. On 2 August, exactly 60 years will have passed since this legendary singer, composer and bandleader left the world.
R. A. Dvorský was originally named Rudolf Antonín; he adopted the stage surname Dvorský after his birthplace, Dvůr Králové. He began his artistic career at just 16, when he wrote his first compositions. After completing his studies and moving to Prague, his career began to rise rapidly.
He started out at Karel Hašler’s cabaret in Lucerna, later performed at the Červená sedma cabaret, and also found success in the then-emerging medium of radio, where he had his own music programme from 1924. In 1929, he founded his own band, Melody Boys. His popularity continued to grow. His beautifully coloured voice, masculine appearance and face framed by a moustache, along with his unmistakable bow tie, became a symbol of elegance. Naturally, the doors to the world of cinema also opened for R. A. Dvorský.
Together with his orchestras, Dvorský recorded around 2,000 songs on gramophone records. After the war, he even signed a contract with an American publisher.
A dramatic fall after the rise of communism
The turning point came when the communists seized power. Jazz was labelled undesirable, decadent form of bourgeois music. R. A. Dvorský was placed among the so-called “former people”, a category used by the regime for those considered politically unreliable. There was no place for a man of so many professions. His publishing houses were nationalised and he was banned from performing.
At the same time, R. A. Dvorský suffered the death of his son. With the help of his American publisher, the singer and composer tried to move to the West. However, the communist authorities rejected his application for emigration, and after an unsuccessful attempt to leave the country by hijacking a passenger plane, he was accused of attempting to flee and treason, receiving a sentence of three and a half years in prison.
Even this did not break the former symbol of elegance. He continued composing music, although he was not allowed to perform publicly. Permission to return to the stage came only one year before his death. When R. A. Dvorský died on 2 August 1966, he could not have known that his song “Pohádka o konvalinkách” would become the best-selling gramophone hit just one year later.
