Bedřich Smetana. Unable to earn much money from his music (or from his school of music), Smetana´s life was overshadowed by the deaths of three of his four daughters within the space of two years, then the death of his wife three years later. It was not until 1866 when fortune smiled upon 42-year-old Smetana with the enthusiastic response to his opera The Brandenburgers in Bohemia. His next work, The Bartered Bride, was also successful. Smetana is also famous, of course, as the composer of Má Vlast. Like Beethoven, he suffered from deafness later in life, but continued to compose music. He died of syphilis-related complications in 1884, and was buried in the cemetery at Vyšehrad.
Overture to the Bartered Bride Smetana 1824-1884. Epic, [1957]. Orchestra of the Slovenian National Opera ; Dimitri Gebré, conductor.
Can Can The Infernal Galop from Jacques Offenbach's Orpheus in the Underworld
Fat Boy Slim Because We Can from Moulin Rouge
Antonín Dvořák moved to Prague at the age of 16, where he studied music. He became a member of the National Theatre´s orchestra in 1861, remaining there for ten years (under the occasional leadership of Smetana). His work was admired by none other than Johannes Brahms, leading to a close friendship between the two musicians. Dvořák went from strength to strength, becoming a professor of composition at the Prague Conservatory, traveling to London to conduct his music, receiving an honorary degree from Cambridge University and serving as the director of the National Conservatory of Music in New York City. It was here that he wrote his most famous work, From the New World. After his return to Prague and the Conservatory, he composed the beloved Rusalka. He is also buried in the cemetery at Vyšehrad.
Judi Dench, The Cherry Orchard 1962
Antonin Dvorak, O Silver Moon performed by Renee Fleming. The Art of Renee Fleming
Super Mario Bros, Can Can
Antonín Dvořák – Cypresses, B.152: IV. Poco adagio – Dvorak: Cypress String Quartet, String Quartet No. 13 Op. 106
Leoš Janáček studied not only in Prague, but in Vienna and Leipzig. He was a native of Moravia, and spent most of his life in Brno, founding a college for organists there in 1881; he ran this college until 1920. Like Smetana, Janáček experienced more than one tragedy. His son Vladimír died at the age of two, and his daughter Olga died shortly after her father completed the score to his opera Jenůfa (which he played for her just four days before her death). His operas premiered in Brno before being performed in Prague; Jenůfa didn´t win wide acclaim until it was shown in Prague in 1915, eleven years after its Brno premiere. Janáček himself - now in his 50s - became famous as a result. He died in 1928.
Janáček, Leoš, 1854-1928. Jenůfa Žárlivost overture London Digital, 1983. Elisabeth Söderström, Lucia Popp, sopranos ; Eva Randová, alto ; Wiesłav Ochman, Peter Dvorsky, tenors ; Vienna State Opera Chorus Vienna Philharmonic ; Charles Mackerras, conductor.
Kat'a Kabanová London, 1977. Elisabeth Söderström, Naděžda Kniplová, sopranos; Petr Dvorský, tenor; supporting soloists; Chorus of the Vienna State Opera; Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra; Charles Mackerras, conductor.
Offenbach, Jacques, 1819-1880. Les Contes d'Hoffmann. Selections. Tales of Hoffmann; highlights Angel [1967] Gianna d'Angelo, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, and Victoria de los Angeles, sopranos, and Nicolai Gedda, tenor, in the title role, with supporting soloists; Chœurs René Duclos; Orchestre de la Société des concerts du Conservatoire; André Cluytens, conductor; sung in French.
Bohuslav Martinů studied music in his hometown of Policka as a child; when he was sixteen, his mother took him to Prague to meet with music experts. Later that year, he entered the Prague Conservatoire. Martinů , however, began failing his exams by the end of his second year and eventually dropped out. He maintained an intense schedule of attending concerts, studying, and composing, with his works being performed in Prague. After World War I, he joined the Czech Philharmonic as second violinist, composing a piece titled Czech Rhapsody that was performed by the orchestra in 1919. Martinů then took the opportunity to study with composer Albert Roussel in Paris; during this period (1935) he was awarded a Czechoslovak State Prize for his opera Hry o Marií. When World War II exploded, Martinů went first to Switzerland, then the United States, arriving in 1941. Eventually returning to Switzerland, he died there in 1959.
Martinů – Concerto for String Quartet and Orchestra, Adagio Ljubljana Symphony Orchestra Various Artists – 50 Classics for Relaxation
Offenbach, Jacques,1819-1880. La Périchole.[An opéra bouffe in three acts] RCA Victor1957 Patrice Munsel, Theodor Uppman, and Cyril Ritchard, with supporting soloists; Metropolitan Opera Chorus and Orchestra; Jean Morel, conductor.
Jan Jakub Ryba was born in Přeštice, near Pilsen, the son of an organist and composer. In 1780, he came to Prague to study music; an admirer of Mozart´s, he conducted a performance of The Marriage of Figaro here. In 1784, he took a job as a teacher in Nepomuk. He was soon fired from this position, and spent some time wandering from place to place, eventually taking another teaching job in Rožmitál pod Třenšínem. It was here that he met his wife, Anna; the couple had nine children. Though the school flourished under his guidance, he was frequently in conflict with the town pastor and council. 1796 was the year in which he wrote his most famous work, Hej, mistr, still often played at Christmas. In 1815, Ryba´s body was found in the woods; he had cut his throat with a razor. He was buried in a plague cemetery near Rožmitál pod Třenšínem.
Ryba, Jakub Jan – Ryba: Ceska Mse Vanocni: Agnus Dei
Offenbach, Jacques,1819-1880. Gaîte parisienne, as presented by the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. Arr. by Manuel Rosenthal. Angel, [1975] Hollywood Bowl Symphony Orchestra; Felix Slatkin, conductor.
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