Karel Svoboda
Encyclopedia
Karel Svoboda was a Czech composer of popular music. He wrote music for many TV series in the 1970s.
, Czechoslovakia
(now Prague
, Czech Republic
) and began his career as a pop composer after abandoning medicine in his third year of university. He became a member of the rock band "Mefisto" in 1963 where he played piano. Later, he composed music for the Laterna Magica theatre in Prague
and for many Czech singers. In 1969 he wrote Lady Carneval for Karel Gott
, a major Czech pop star. Svoboda wrote a total of 80 songs for Gott.
Svoboda composed TV scores for the German channel ZDF
for over 30 years. He wrote the scores to many TV series in the 1970s that a whole generation of Europeans grew up with. Some examples of these TV series are Vicky the Viking
, Maya the Bee
and The Wonderful Adventures of Nils. He also composed the score for the movie Three Nuts for Cinderella
.
Svoboda wrote scores for almost 90 films and TV series.
He also wrote scores for several musicals:
Svoboda was found dead from gunshot wounds in the garden of his villa at Jevany
on January 28, 2007. It is believed that he committed suicide
.
Works
Karel Svoboda was born in PraguePrague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
(now Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
) and began his career as a pop composer after abandoning medicine in his third year of university. He became a member of the rock band "Mefisto" in 1963 where he played piano. Later, he composed music for the Laterna Magica theatre in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
and for many Czech singers. In 1969 he wrote Lady Carneval for Karel Gott
Karel Gott
Karel Gott is a Czech Schlager singer, and an amateur painter. He is considered as the most successful male singer in former Czechoslovakia and currently in the Czech Republic; he has being voted the Most Favorite Male Singer in the annual national pool Český slavík in total thirty-six times...
, a major Czech pop star. Svoboda wrote a total of 80 songs for Gott.
Svoboda composed TV scores for the German channel ZDF
ZDF
Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen , ZDF, is a public-service German television broadcaster based in Mainz . It is run as an independent non-profit institution, which was founded by the German federal states . The ZDF is financed by television licence fees called GEZ and advertising revenues...
for over 30 years. He wrote the scores to many TV series in the 1970s that a whole generation of Europeans grew up with. Some examples of these TV series are Vicky the Viking
Vicky the Viking
Vicky the Viking, known as in Germany and Austria and in Japan, is an Austrian-German-Japanese cartoon series which tells the adventures of Vicky, a young Viking boy who uses his wits to help his Viking fellows...
, Maya the Bee
Maya the Bee
The Adventures of Maya the Bee is a German book, comic book series and animated television series, first written by Waldemar Bonsels and published in 1912...
and The Wonderful Adventures of Nils. He also composed the score for the movie Three Nuts for Cinderella
Tri oríšky pro Popelku
Tři oříšky pro Popelku is a Czechoslovak-German fairy-tale film from 1973.It was directed by Václav Vorlíček in co-production between DEFA-Studio für Spielfilme and Barrandov Studios. The story was based on a fairy tale written by Božena Němcová . Main roles were played by Libuše Šafránková and...
.
Svoboda wrote scores for almost 90 films and TV series.
He also wrote scores for several musicals:
- "Noc na Karlštejně"
- "DraculaDracula (Czech musical)Dracula is a musical created by Czech composer Karel Svoboda. Its world premiere was in Prague on 13 October 1995 with Daniel Hůlka in the title role.-16th Century:...
", world premiere in Prague on 13 October, 1995 - "Monte Christo", 2000
- "Golem", 2006, book by Zdeněk Zelenka
Svoboda was found dead from gunshot wounds in the garden of his villa at Jevany
Jevany
Jevany is a village and municipality in Prague-East District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. -Notes:*This article was initially translated from the Czech Wikipedia....
on January 28, 2007. It is believed that he committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
.
External links
- Maya the Bee mp3 sample.
- Karel Svoboda news