iNational Museum – Historical BuildingNové Město
The Dark Blue World of Jaroslav Ježek
Marking the 120th anniversary of composer Jaroslav Ježek's birth, twelve sections trace his life from student years through the Liberated Theatre to American exile.
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Jaroslav Ježek's round, black-rimmed glasses are the first thing anyone remembers about him, and they barely helped him see. His sight was badly damaged from childhood, and the frames mostly hid it. What actually helped him find his way was the one-eyed telescope also on show, plus maps and an unusually sharp memory.
The National Museum marks his 120th birthday with a panel show of twelve stops: the Prague Conservatory, the Liberated Theatre with Voskovec and Werich, and exile in New York from 1939 until his death in 1942. Between family photos and scores sit his student ID, a reference from Josef Suk and the fingerprints from his US visa application. You scan a QR code and Tři strážníci plays on your phone.
Expect mostly photographs, scores and paper rather than objects. Entry is on the Museum Complex ticket, 360 CZK or 260 CZK reduced, and under-15s go free with an adult. On weekends around noon the building can fill up, with waits of 30 to 45 minutes.
Look for
Ježek's round black-rimmed glasses
Look for the glasses that defined his look, which did little for his badly damaged sight and mostly served to hide it.
The one-eyed telescope
The monocular he actually relied on to orient himself in space, far more useful to him than the famous glasses.
The score of the 1940 Piano Sonata
Accepted for an international festival in the US, it went missing before the concert and a Martinů piece was played instead, a blow that soured his exile.
Fingerprints from his US visa application
Official prints taken after he, Voskovec and Werich were forced to leave for America in 1939, shown among his student ID and school reports.
The New York choir rehearsal recording
Scan the QR code for the playlist and find a surviving rehearsal with the Czechoslovak workers' choir in New York, alongside hits like Tři strážníci.
Good for
- Nerding Out
- Rainy Days
Skip if
You want objects over reading: it's a panel show of photos, scores and documents with few personal items.
With kids
Under-15s go free with an adult; ages 15 to 18 pay the reduced 260 CZK.
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Image credits
9
- The Dark Blue World of Jaroslav JežekCourtesy of National Museum – Historical Building
- Czech Press Photo 2025Tomáš Binter / Czech Press Photo
- Radka Bodzewicz: FAUSTCourtesy of DOX Centre for Contemporary Art
- Květa Kovářová – For the Shape of the FigureCourtesy of Museum Kampa
- National Museum – Historical BuildingNurtenge / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
- National Museum – New BuildingKippelboy, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Mucha MuseumVitVit, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Mucha Museum (Savarin Palace)Crestyl, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Museum of CommunismJiriMatejicek / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0