Adam Václav Michna z Otradovic

Adam Václav Michna z Otradovic (c. 1600–1676) was a legendary Czech early Baroque poet, composer, choirmaster, and organist. He spent his entire life in Jindřichův Hradec, where he worked as a castle organist and respected burgher. He became the founder of modern Czech national music and the author of immortal works such as the collections Česká mariánská muzika, Loutna česká, and Svatoroční muzika. His songs, including the famous Christmas carol Chtíc, aby spal, still form a cornerstone of Czech Christmas traditions and are regularly staged, dramatized, and musically arranged in theatrical plays across the Czech Republic.