 While in Brno, he made friends with František Sušil, also a Catholic priest, who was making a collection of Moravian folk music.As a result of these cultural influences, he devoted himself to promoting the local arts, making significant donations to the collection of the Brno Museum.He made an especially large donation in 1859, pursuant to his departure to Northern Italy, where he had volunteered to serve as a chaplain in the Austrian military hospitals during the Italian War.