Faculty of Music, JAMU

The building housing the Faculty of Music of the Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts (JAMU) is an important architectural landmark in Brno and a lasting part of the city’s building history. It was originally constructed as a German grammar school between 1860–62, following the winning design by Viennese architects Eduard van der Nüll and August Siccard von Siccardsburg.

The building stands on the site of the former city walls. The future Czech president Tomáš Masaryk attended school here, and the building was even the scene of one of his notorious incidents with the school principal. JAMU has owned the building since 1949, and it has undergone several renovations, the most significant of which took place in the 1990s to stabilise the structure and prevent it from sinking into the old moat.

The architects drew stylistic inspiration from classical Greece. Four monumental caryatids on the portico, symbolising classical education, echo the Erechtheion on the Acropolis in Athens and were sculpted by Josef Břenek. Medallions with relief busts of notable scientists were created by Adolf Loose Sr. The building’s interior is equally remarkable: a spacious vestibule with a triple staircase now features a bust of Leoš Janáček, made in 1924 by Jan Štursa, a leading figure in modern Czech sculpture.

The Faculty of Music is an excellent institution for higher education in the arts, reflecting both its long tradition and the demands of today’s dynamic era. It was established in 1947 as one of the two founding faculties of JAMU, alongside the Faculty of Theatre. Although the faculty structure was dissolved in 1959 and only restored in 1990, the Faculty of Music has continuously nurtured many leading musicians of international renown.

Today, the Faculty of Music offers a broad platform not only for music education but also for creative, artistic, and scholarly work, contributing to the cultural and social life of Brno, the region, the Czech Republic, and the international sphere.