Permanent Appointment

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32076, 26 August 1969, Page 1

Permanent Appointment

The University of Canterbury Council has appointed the internationally known Prague Quartet permanently to the Faculty of Music.

Two of the present quartet —Jaroslav Karlovsky (viola) and Zdenek Konicek (cello)—were members of the original quartet, which was founded by leading players of the Prague Symphony Orchestra. In 1958 the quartet won such renown at an international competition at Liege that the players were relieved of their orchestral commitments to devote themselves to chamber music and advance the standing of Czech concert performances throughout the world. In 1966 the Quartet was appointed to Canterbury University for a six months teaching period, and, it returned to the university this year, with Stefan Czapary (first violin) and Rudolf Kalup (second violin) replacing Bretislav Novotny and Karel Pribyl.. After it left the university in 1966 the quartet was fully booked with international engagements until the end of last year. It has seldom taken university appointments. The last such appointment before 1966 was the summer course at the University of Denmark. At Canterbury University the quartet will teach individual instruments and chamber music in classical, modern, impressionist and traditional styles.

The quartet's decision to accept a permanent appointment to the university is understood to have been influenced by the members’ desire to settle down and by the political unrest in Czechoslovakia. The photograph shows, from left, Messrs Konicek, Karlovsky, Czapary and Kalup.