• St James's Church [Kostel svatého Jakuba]: participating institution, vv

Information about this event was published by Prager Morgenpost 24/3/1863. The periodical reported: ‘Church music [Kirchenmusik]. Wednesday, on 25th March on „Annunciation Day“ [Maria Verkündigung], is being performed in the Church of St James at 11 o’clock a new Vocal Mass, in C minor for male chorus and solo voices by W. Proška, as well as interpolations by the same composer under his individual direction. The soloists are named as Messrs Vecko, Horák, Rafael and Fabian.’ No further details were given by this source.

A similar report appeared in Národní listy 24/3/1863, giving more specific information about the scoring of the interpolations: ‘Church music [Kostelní hudba]. Tomorrow on the day of the Annunciation of St Mary will be performed at 11 o’clock in Church of St James a new Mass in C minor for male voices by the local choir director Václav Proška, and a graduale and an offertorium by the same for mixed voices. Messrs Vecko, Hozák, Rafael and Fabian have taken the solo parts.’

The two sources offered different names in identifying the second of the solo vocalists, obviously due to an error in printing the middle letter in one of the two newspapers. Probably the accurate rendition was ‘Hozák’. ‘Horák’ seems unlikely given this would have intimated the chorus director, pedagogue and composer Václav Horák, then active in Prague but not at this time appearing as a singer.