Prague sings: Hej mistře! (Hey Master!)
23.12.2018 — It is traditionally celebrated at midnight on Christmas Eve, in various locations in the Capital. 'Czech Christmas Mass', also known as Hej mistře! ('Hey Master!'), popularly called Rybovka, and in Latin Missa solemnis Festis Nativitatis D. J. Ch. acomodata in linguam bohemicam musicam, abriviated to Missa pastoralis bohemika, is a Czech religious composition written by Jakub Jan Ryba. It is the first written liturgical composition in Czech. Rybovka is a pastoral play set in Czechia that narrates the story of the Annunciation of Christ's birth and the arrival of shepherds to the manger in the stable. It was composed in 1796 and hand-written copies quickly spread throughout the Kingdom of Bohemia. The original score has not been preserved, and the versions that are played today are compiled based on critical analyses of the hand-written copies.