Antonín Dvořák

Antonín Dvořák drew inspiration from the folk traditions of Bohemia to compose great Romantic symphonies. After a struggling early career in Prague, Dvořák made his international breakthrough with his famous Slavonic Dances, supported by Johannes Brahms and his editor Fritz Simrock in the late 1870s. This propelled his career as he composed and conducted throughout Europe, including Austria, Germany, and notably the UK. During his tenure as the Director of the National Conservatory of Music in New York (1892–1895), Dvořák composed one of his best-known works, Symphony No. 9 (From the New World), which premiered at Carnegie Hall in December 1893. Dvořák encouraged Americans to listen to their unique musical heritage, especially black spirituals and Native American music. The Ninth Symphony was even taken on the 1969 Apollo 11 mission to the moon by Neil Armstrong.

For all his international acclaim, Dvořák never forgot his humble roots. He returned to his beloved homeland and composed his most famous opera, Rusalka, in 1900. The sights and sounds of his childhood in Nelahozeves—trains and steamboats, folk music and dancing, church bells and bird song—echoed throughout his life, ever inspiring him to new musical heights.

Historical Origins

The Baroque birth house of Antonín Dvořák, which stands adjacent to Nelahozeves Castle, the Church of St. Andrew, and the Vltava River, dates to the late-16th century as one of the oldest buildings in the village. Known as house no. 12, it served as the local tavern and the heart of social life in Nelahozeves. The house belonged to a family named Engelhardt, who bought the house and ancillary grounds in 1817.

František Dvořák (father of Antonín) settled in the village with his wife, Anna, in 1840, after completing his butchery apprenticeship. They first lived in house no. 24, the village butchery, which they managed. When Joseph Engelhardt (1770–1837) died in 1837, the house was available for rent. The Dvořáks moved into the tavern in 1840, while operating the butcher’s shop in house no. 24. The future composer Antonín was born in the tavern on September 8, 1841, as the first of their nine children. The family lived only on the ground floor of the house, while the upper floor, which already existed at that time, was occupied by other tenants. Since most of the rooms on the ground floor were used for tavern business, the Dvořáks had only two rooms in which to live: a kitchen, also used for the tavern, and a living room.

At the center of the village, the tavern served as a gathering place for villagers ending their workday with a beer, smoking their pipes, playing card games, and exchanging news. The tavern was also a setting for local music, folklore, theater, and village dances. František also joined in the music-making, entertaining guests with his zither playing, often accompanied by Antonín who learned to play the violin and also played in the village band. In 1853, Antonín graduated from school and moved to the nearby town of Zlonice to continue his studies. In 1855, František and Anna left Nelahozeves and joined Antonín in Zlonice.

We thank the State District Archive in Mělník for the historical photographs shown.  

Architectural Features

The birth house was built in the Baroque style and dates to the late 16th century. At the beginning of the 19th century, the house was heavily renovated and received the Classicist front façade and vaulted ceilings on the ground floor which remain today. In 1842, a major fire broke out which destroyed part of the building. The family was forced to move back to the butchery (house no. 24). The birth house was soon rebuilt, followed by later additions that closely resemble its present-day structure. In the 1870s, the Dance Hall was altered to the way it appears today. The house is part of a complex of residential and farm buildings—the latter a valuable example of a historic farmyard with Neoclassical details. Adjacent to the main house, the granary building is nearly as old. It was originally used to store and dry corn, and later repurposed for other needs. It might have served the butchery during Antonín’s childhood. Before the complex became a memorial site in 1951, it was used as a grocery shop, which was when its doors to the street were added.

Recent History

The house was bought by the Lobkowicz family in 1884. Along with other Lobkowicz family estates, it was confiscated by the Nazis in 1939 and later by the Communist regime after 1948. The house continued to function as a tavern until 1950. In 1951, the Communist State turned the building into a memorial and museum. In 1958, the main building, with its surrounding structures, was listed as a designated cultural monument by the Czech heritage registry. From 1976, the building was administered by the Czech National Museum. It was returned to the Lobkowicz family during restitution in 1992 and continued to be leased to the Czech National Museum for a symbolic 1 CZK per year. In 2019, the Lobkowicz Collections o.p.s. took over the management of the house, ancillary buildings, and grounds to transform it into a new museum and international musical heritage site. The interactive and immersive museum experience tells the extraordinary journey of Dvořák’s life, from humble origins to world-famous composer. The site also serves as a cultural center, inspiring and nurturing visitors with dedicated rehearsal and performance spaces, workshops, concerts, a meditation garden, and community outreach programs suitable for age and interest groups of all kinds.