Guide to the Bedrich Vaska Papers
© Copyright 2008 Special Collections & University Archives. All rights reserved.
2008-01-11
5500 Campanile Dr. MC 8050
San Diego, CA, 92182-8050
URL: http://library.sdsu.edu/scua
Email: scref@rohan.sdsu.edu
Phone: 619-594-6791
Guide to the Bedrich Vaska Papers
1875/1978
Special Collections & University Archives
Overview of the Collection
Collection Title: Bedrich Vaska Papers
Dates: 1875-1978
Identification: MS-0262
Creator:
Vaska, Bedrich, 1879-1979
Physical Description: 2.50 linear ft
Language of Materials:
English
French
German
Russian
Polish
Dutch;Flemish
Serbian
Croatian
Hungarian
Ukrainian
Finnish
Repository:
Special Collections & University Archives
5500 Campanile Dr. MC 8050
San Diego, CA, 92182-8050
URL: http://library.sdsu.edu/scua
Email: scref@rohan.sdsu.edu
Phone: 619-594-6791
Note:
Other Information:
Bedrich Vaska's family tree is available in the Louis A. Kenney Reading Room.
Biographical Information:
Cellist Bedrich Vaska was a native of Czechoslovakia who resided in the United States from 1911 until his death in 1978. He
was a pupil of Antonin Dvorak, and studied at the Prague Conservatory where he met three other pupils of Dvorak -- Oscar Nedbal,
Josef Suk, and Vitezslav Novak. Vaska became the last living pupil of Dvorak. He was the founder of, and had a long association
with the Sevcik Quartet, 1899-1911.
Access Terms
This collection is indexed under the following controlled access subject terms.
Genre/Form of Material:
Personal Papers
Publications
Personal Name:
Smetana, Bedřich, 1824-1884. Má vlast
Vaska, Bedrich, 1879-1979 -- Archives
Vaska, Bedrich, 1879-1979 -- Correspondence
Title:
Violoncellists -- Czechoslovakia -- Biography -- Sources
Violoncellists -- Czechoslovakia -- Correspondence
Violoncellists -- United States -- Biography -- Sources
Violoncellists -- United States -- Correspondence
Administrative Information
Accruals:
December 1986
Conditions Governing Use:
The copyright interests in these materials have not been transferred to San Diego State University. Copyright resides with
the creators of materials contained in the collection or their heirs. The nature of historical archival and manuscript collections
is such that copyright status may be difficult or even impossible to determine. Requests for permission to publish must be
submitted to the Head of Special Collections, San Diego State University, Library and Information Access. When granted, permission
is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical item and is not intended to include or imply permission
of the copyright holder(s), which must also be obtained in order to publish. Materials from our collections are made available
for use in research, teaching, and private study. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including
but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials.
Conditions Governing Access:
This collection is open for research.
Preferred Citation:
Identification of item, folder title, box number, Bedrich Vaska Papers, Special Collections and University Archives, Library
and Information Access, San Diego State University.
Related Materials:
Lida Brodenova Papers
Jan Lowenbach Papers
Arrangement of Materials:
The collection is arranged chronologically.
Scope and Contents
The collection primarily consists of correspondence, but it also includes postcards, newspaper clippings, and photographs.
Especially notable is Vaska's explanation of Bedrich Smetana's innermost, most personal feelings of
Ma Vlast, which Vaska used to better explain the scores to performing musicians. This
From My Life is written in Vaska's hand in Czech, Finnish, German, French, and Polish languages, as he conducted
Ma Vlast in those countries.
Most of the correspondence is written in Czech, but some is also written in German, Russian, Polish, Dutch, French, Yugoslavian,
English, Hungarian, Ukrainian, and Finnish.
Box 1, Folder 1
Thesis by Eleanor Jackson, the graduate Faculties of C.W. Post Center, Long Island University on a thema Bedrich Vaska, Brookville,
New York
May 11, 1973
Scope and Contents
two copies
Box 1, Folder 3
March 16, 1875 - July 24, 1883
Box 1, Folder 4
March 29, 1891 - November 15, 1895
Box 1, Folder 6
April 12, 1897 - December 14, 1897
Box 1, Folder 7
January 11, 1898 - December 17, 1898
Box 1, Folder 8
January 21, 1898 - December 24, 1899
Box 1, Folder 9
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Ondrickova
January 12, 1900 - November 11, 1900
Box 1, Folder 10
Family correspondence
January 20, 1900 - December 6, 1900
Box 1, Folder 11
Gusta Ondrickova to Bedrich Vaska
January 30, 1901 - November 15, 1901
Box 1, Folder 12
Pictures of Bedrich Vaska and his friends; Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Ondrickova
June 10, 1901 - December 14, 1901
Box 1, Folder 13
Post cards only from all over
June 6, 1901, 1903, 1909 - June 1, 1910
Box 1, Folder 14
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Ondrickova
January 5, 1901 - August 28, 1901
Box 1, Folder 15
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Ondrickova
January 16, 1901 - December 31, 1901
Box 1, Folder 16
Gusta Ondrickova to Bedrich Vaska post cards only
January 28, 1902 - December 30, 1902
Box 1, Folder 17
Gusta Ondrickova to Bedrich Vaska
February 1, 1902 - November 11, 1902
Box 1, Folder 18
Family Correspondence
January 17, 1902 - February 16, 1902
Box 1, Folder 19
Gusta Ondrickova to Bedrich Vaska
July 15, 1902 - October 31, 1902
Box 1, Folder 20
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Ondrickova
January 12, 1902 - December 31, 1902
Box 1, Folder 21
Postcards of Plzen and Domazlice
October 3 and 4, 1902
Box 1, Folder 22
Family Correspondence
October 7, 1897 - February 20, 1902
Box 1, Folder 23
Postcards of Poland and Bohemia only
January 6, 1903 - December 29, 1903
Box 1, Folder 24
Family Correspondence
January 1, 1903 - December 19, 1903
Box 1, Folder 25
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Ondrickova
January 3, 1903 - December 31, 1903
Box 1, Folder 26
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Ondrickova
January 8, 1904 - July 23, 1904
Box 1, Folder 27
Gusta Ondrickova to Bedrich Vaska
January 1, 1904 - September 21, 1904
Box 1, Folder 28
Family Correspondence
March 3, 1904 - November 28, 1904
Box 1, Folder 29
Postcards of Bohemia only
March 31, 1904 - October 1, 1904
Box 2, Folder 1
Postcards of Europe only
February 1, 1905 - December 10, 1905
Box 2, Folder 2
Gusta Vaskova to Bedrich Vaska
March 9, 1905 - June 19, 1905
Box 2, Folder 3
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Vaskova
March 7, 1905 - August 2, 1905
Box 2, Folder 4
Family Correspondence
January 6, 1905 - November 26, 1905
Box 2, Folder 5
Gusta Vaskova to Bedrich Vaska
January 23, 1906 - November 19, 1906
Box 2, Folder 6
Family Correspondence
June 18, 1906
Box 2, Folder 7
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Vaskova
January 27, 1906 - December 6, 1906
Box 2, Folder 8
Postcards of Europe and business
January 28, 1906 - December 19, 1906
Box 2, Folder 9
Gusta Vaskova to Bedrich Vaska
January 21, 1907 - May 27, 1907
Box 2, Folder 10
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Vaskova
January 17, 1907 - November 28, 1907
Box 2, Folder 11
Business Postcards
July 15, 1907
Box 2, Folder 12
Postcards of Europe only
January 11, 1907 - December 10, 1907
Box 2, Folder 13
Business and personell postcards
January 12, 1907 - October 29, 1907
Box 2, Folder 14
Gusta Vaskova to Bedrich Vaska
January 10, 1908
Box 2, Folder 15
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Vaskova
January 17, 1908 - December 21, 1908
Box 2, Folder 16
Postcards of Europe only
January 7, 1908 - December 11, 1908
Box 2, Folder 17
Business postcards
January 24, 1908 - December 9, 1908
Box 2, Folder 18
Business Postcards
January 29, 1909 - November 22, 1909
Box 2, Folder 19
Gusta Vaskova to Bedrich Vaska
June 6, 1909 - November 18, 1909
Box 2, Folder 20
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Vaskova
March 30, 1909 - December 3, 1909
Box 2, Folder 21
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Vaskova
February 18, 1910; March 24, 1910
Box 2, Folder 22
Business Postcards
January 1, 1910 - October 12, 1910
Box 2, Folder 23
Gusta Vaskova to Bedrich Vaska
January 9, 1911 - March 23, 1911
Box 2, Folder 24
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Vaskova
January 26, 1911 - January 27, 1911
Box 2, Folder 25
Family and other correspondence
March 15, 1911 - November 14, 1911
Box 2, Folder 26
Family Correspondence
April 17, 1912 - November 18, 1912
Box 2, Folder 27
Family Correspondence
March 12, 1913 - November 2, 1913
Box 2, Folder 28
Family Correspondence
January 19, 1914 - December 8, 1914
Box 2, Folder 29
Family Correspondence
February 12, 1915; November 2, 1915
Box 2, Folder 30
Family Correspondence
April 16, 1916
Box 2, Folder 31
Family Correspondence
February 5, 1917
Box 2, Folder 32
Family and Other Correspondence
May 7, 1918 - September 12, 1918
Box 2, Folder 33
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Vaskova
September 3, 1919 - December 7, 1919
Box 2, Folder 34
Gusta Vaskova to Bedrich Vaska
January 29, 1919 - December 19, 1919
Box 2, Folder 35
Family Correspondence
August 30, 1919
Box 2, Folder 36
Gusta Vaskova to Bedrich Vaska
January 22, 1920 - September 7, 1920
Box 2, Folder 37
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Vaskova
January 1, 1920 - May 5, 1920
Box 2, Folder 38
Family Correspondence
February 3, 1920 - April 17, 1920
Box 2, Folder 39
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Vaskova
September 22, 1921 - December 9, 1921
Box 2, Folder 40
Gusta Vaskova to Bedrich Vaska
June 28, 1921 - July 11, 1921
Box 2, Folder 41
Family Correspondence
June 8, 1921 - November 30, 1921
Box 2, Folder 42
Bedrich Vaska to Gusta Vaskova
March 3, 1922 - July 21, 1922
Box 2, Folder 43
Family Correspondence
January 9, 1922 - December 2, 1922
Box 2, Folder 44
Family Correspondence
January 13, 1923 - November 12, 1923
Box 2, Folder 45
Family Correspondence
June 30, 1939, November 4, 1941, September 3, 1945, November 1, 1945
Box 2, Folder 46
Family Correspondence
May 10, 1946 - December 31, 1946
Box 2, Folder 47
Family Correspondence
September 14, 1951
Box 2, Folder 48
February 20, 1964 - February 23, 1964
Scope and Contents
Summary of Bedrich Vaska's Musical Life, J. Vlach's Quartet in USA - news clipping from "Svobodne Slove" on February 20, 1964
Box 2, Folder 49
December 22, 1978
Scope and Contents
"The Evening Gazette":
-A Giant in the World
-Great Cellist's Life Ended in Obscurity of a City Flat
Box 2, Folder 50
Correspondence of Gusta Vaskova, Bedrich Vaska, their family members and their friends
n.d.
Box 2, Folder 51
June 1876 - February 2, 1910
Scope and Contents
-Business postcards mostly in French
-envelopes, stamps, 2 unused postcards and one incomplete letter in German language addressed to Bedrich Vaska
-"Ma Vlast," Vaska's handwritten explanation of the musical feeling of Smetana's symphony of the same name. Written in Czech,
Finish, German, French, and Polish, and intended to help Vaska explain the symphony to the performing musicians.