National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library to host benefit concert for those affected by Texas floods

The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library is hosting a benefit concert July 31 to support people affected by the recent flooding in Texas.

“We want to support our friends and colleagues in Texas who were so impacted by this horrific tragedy,” said Cecilia Rokusek, NCSML president and CEO.

Texas is home to the largest Czech-American population in the United States.

The concert will feature Matěj Číp and the Valachia Cimbalom Quartet. The cimbalom is a stringed instrument prominent in folk music in the Czech and Slovak Republics. Číp, also known worldwide as “Cimbalom Guy,” gave an informative lecture and performance at the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library last year as part of its 50th anniversary celebrations.

Číp, from a small village in Moravia, has devoted his life to playing the cimbalom and sharing the instrument with the world. He was the first university-level cimbalom student in the U.S.

Doors open at 5:45 p.m., and the concert starts at 6 p.m., followed by a band after party. Requested donation is $25.

The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library is keenly aware of the devastation flooding can bring. NCSML was inundated by eight feet of water during the June 2008 flood which caused $11 million in damages. In 2011, the building was lifted and placed on a new, higher foundation, expanded and reopened in 2012.

“We have learned that strong communities band together to recover from disaster,” Rokusek said. “It is only right that we in Cedar Rapids, who were so impacted by the Flood of 2008, provide assistance to the communities impacted, especially the children’s camps, so that they can rebuild.”