Classical The best music site on the web there is where you can read about and listen to blues, jazz, classical music and much more. This is your ultimate music resource. Tons of albums can be found within. http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/classical/749-bedrichsmetana.feed 2024-05-19T23:59:24Z Joomla! 1.5 - Open Source Content Management Bedrich Smetana - Dalibor (Krips) [1969] 2016-04-07T16:03:32Z 2016-04-07T16:03:32Z http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/en/classical/749-bedrichsmetana/19519-bedrich-smetana-dalibor-krips-1969.html bluesever administration@theblues-thatjazz.com <p><strong>Bedrich Smetana - Dalibor (Krips) [1969]</strong></p> <p><img src="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/ObrMuz/Classical/Smetana/dalibor.jpg" border="0" alt="Image could not be displayed. Check browser for compatibility." /></p> <pre><em> 1. Heut' richtet man hier Dalibor! 2. Entry of the King - Ihr wisst, wie lange dieses Konigreich 3. Erhebe nun die Klage 4. Wie, das ist er? Dies Dalibor? 5. Schwerer Verbrechen klagt man 6. Durch ein Verbrechen suchtest du 7. O Furst, ich flehe um sein Leben 8. O Gott, welch Aufruhr 9. Kein schoneres Leben is auf der Welt 10. Sag, Dalibors Geschick ist wohl bekannt 11. Hor mich gut an, was ich dir sage 12. Ach, wie traurig ist mein Geschaft 13. Alles ist fertig, geht nur hinein 14. Ist es wahr? 15. Interlude 16. War es ein Traumbild? 17. Knarrt da nicht die ture? 18. O ungeahntes Gluck der Liebe 19. Mein Herr und Konig 20. In spater Stunde 21. Seid Ihr zur Ende? 22. Interlude 23. Hort noch niemand die Zeichen der Geige? 24. Milada!... Wo bin ich? 25. Gefangen sind sie alle, bis auf ihn </em> Vladislav, King of Bohemia - Eberhard Wächter (baritone) Dalibor - Ludovic Spiess (tenor) Milada - Leonie Rysanek-Gausmann (Soprano) Jitka - Lotte Rysanek (soprano) Budivoj, Lord of Castle – Oskar Czerwenka (bass) Bener, Jailer - Walter Kreppel (bass) Vitek - Adolf Dallapozza (tenor) Judge - Tugomir Franc (bass) Vienna State Opera Orchestra and Chorus Josef Krips – conductor </pre> <p> </p> <p>Dalibor is magnificently conducted by Krips who, with the VPO on best form, catches the full lyricism of Smetana's freedom-seeking opera. His cast could hardly be better, headed by Rysanek's impassioned, soaring Mlada and Spiess's virile, heroic yet sensitive Dalibor (oh, how we could do with a tenor of this thrilling calibre today!). Spiess surpasses even the legendary Blachut in the role. Imagine my chagrin then when the edition used heinously omits the hero's Act 3 song of freedom, one of the great passages in the work. Rysanek's younger sister Lotte, sounding uncannily like Leonie, makes much of little as Jitka. Waechter is splendid as the tortured king. The performance is in German, but no matter: this is an exciting set, in spite of the cuts. --- arkivmusic.com</p> <p> </p> <p>Although Anton Dvorak is the most famous Czech composer, and his opera Rusalka argueably the most enjoyable, Bedrich Smetana, (1824-1884) can lay claim to being the father of modern Czech opera. And although Smetana's comic opera The Bartered Bride is perhaps his most famous opera, Dalibor is his dramatic masterpiece.</p> <p>It tells the story of Bohemian knight Dalibor, sentenced to prison for killing the cruel Count Ploskovic, who had murdered Dalibor's best friend. Impressed by his statements at the trial, which talk of taking arms against an unjust monarch, the late Count's own sister Melada falls in love with Dalibor and vows to free him.</p> <p>King Vladislav of Bohemia, informed that Dalibor's followers are planning an insurrection to free him, reluctantly follows the advice of his ministers and orders Dalibor executed. However Dalibor's followers storm the castle and set him free, but Dalibor is killed in the attempt.</p> <p>This is a 1969 live production, sung in German, at the Vienna Staatsoper, where it was first performed in 1897 under the baton of Gustav Mahler, a chamption of Smetana's music. The cast is excellent, with the elegant bass Eberhard Wachter singing King Vladislav, Leonie Rysanek singing Melada, and the title role sung by tenor Ludovic Spiess. All the principals bring tremendous commitment and musicality to their roles, and Josef Crips conducts with his usual sensitivity and vigor. The sound quality is also quite fine.</p> <p>The booklet contains no libretto, and the English translation of the German text contains surprising typos and is a little incomprehensible. (Hence the 4 stars.) Lovers of Czech opera should get this opera in its original language, but this is an excellent introduction to Smetana's great dramatic work and a chance to hear Leonie Rysanek in her prime. --- Steven Muni, amazon.com</p> <p>download (mp3 @320 kbs):</p> <p><a href="https://yadi.sk/d/nC65abNTqo4VR" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">yandex </a> <a href="http://www.4shared.com/zip/EA-zsE9gba/Smetana_-_Dalibor__Krips_--tBt.html" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">4shared </a> <a href="https://mega.nz/#!GQNFhJYT!DtsIvHl8bR-UJ9JEOhoSqlD0X5iyZCUo71Lq0FBnAF0" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mega </a> <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/so2j5p2lo0kmtq2/Smetana_-_Dalibor_%28Krips%29--tBtJ--%5B1969%5D.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mediafire</a> <a href="http://zalivalka.ru/346565" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">zalivalka </a> <a href="https://cloud.mail.ru/public/7WWL/KrJgivCQA" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">cloudmailru </a> <a href="http://uplea.com/dl/DFB97DBC45298EA" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">uplea </a></p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/javascript:history.back();">back</a></p> <p><strong>Bedrich Smetana - Dalibor (Krips) [1969]</strong></p> <p><img src="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/ObrMuz/Classical/Smetana/dalibor.jpg" border="0" alt="Image could not be displayed. Check browser for compatibility." /></p> <pre><em> 1. Heut' richtet man hier Dalibor! 2. Entry of the King - Ihr wisst, wie lange dieses Konigreich 3. Erhebe nun die Klage 4. Wie, das ist er? Dies Dalibor? 5. Schwerer Verbrechen klagt man 6. Durch ein Verbrechen suchtest du 7. O Furst, ich flehe um sein Leben 8. O Gott, welch Aufruhr 9. Kein schoneres Leben is auf der Welt 10. Sag, Dalibors Geschick ist wohl bekannt 11. Hor mich gut an, was ich dir sage 12. Ach, wie traurig ist mein Geschaft 13. Alles ist fertig, geht nur hinein 14. Ist es wahr? 15. Interlude 16. War es ein Traumbild? 17. Knarrt da nicht die ture? 18. O ungeahntes Gluck der Liebe 19. Mein Herr und Konig 20. In spater Stunde 21. Seid Ihr zur Ende? 22. Interlude 23. Hort noch niemand die Zeichen der Geige? 24. Milada!... Wo bin ich? 25. Gefangen sind sie alle, bis auf ihn </em> Vladislav, King of Bohemia - Eberhard Wächter (baritone) Dalibor - Ludovic Spiess (tenor) Milada - Leonie Rysanek-Gausmann (Soprano) Jitka - Lotte Rysanek (soprano) Budivoj, Lord of Castle – Oskar Czerwenka (bass) Bener, Jailer - Walter Kreppel (bass) Vitek - Adolf Dallapozza (tenor) Judge - Tugomir Franc (bass) Vienna State Opera Orchestra and Chorus Josef Krips – conductor </pre> <p> </p> <p>Dalibor is magnificently conducted by Krips who, with the VPO on best form, catches the full lyricism of Smetana's freedom-seeking opera. His cast could hardly be better, headed by Rysanek's impassioned, soaring Mlada and Spiess's virile, heroic yet sensitive Dalibor (oh, how we could do with a tenor of this thrilling calibre today!). Spiess surpasses even the legendary Blachut in the role. Imagine my chagrin then when the edition used heinously omits the hero's Act 3 song of freedom, one of the great passages in the work. Rysanek's younger sister Lotte, sounding uncannily like Leonie, makes much of little as Jitka. Waechter is splendid as the tortured king. The performance is in German, but no matter: this is an exciting set, in spite of the cuts. --- arkivmusic.com</p> <p> </p> <p>Although Anton Dvorak is the most famous Czech composer, and his opera Rusalka argueably the most enjoyable, Bedrich Smetana, (1824-1884) can lay claim to being the father of modern Czech opera. And although Smetana's comic opera The Bartered Bride is perhaps his most famous opera, Dalibor is his dramatic masterpiece.</p> <p>It tells the story of Bohemian knight Dalibor, sentenced to prison for killing the cruel Count Ploskovic, who had murdered Dalibor's best friend. Impressed by his statements at the trial, which talk of taking arms against an unjust monarch, the late Count's own sister Melada falls in love with Dalibor and vows to free him.</p> <p>King Vladislav of Bohemia, informed that Dalibor's followers are planning an insurrection to free him, reluctantly follows the advice of his ministers and orders Dalibor executed. However Dalibor's followers storm the castle and set him free, but Dalibor is killed in the attempt.</p> <p>This is a 1969 live production, sung in German, at the Vienna Staatsoper, where it was first performed in 1897 under the baton of Gustav Mahler, a chamption of Smetana's music. The cast is excellent, with the elegant bass Eberhard Wachter singing King Vladislav, Leonie Rysanek singing Melada, and the title role sung by tenor Ludovic Spiess. All the principals bring tremendous commitment and musicality to their roles, and Josef Crips conducts with his usual sensitivity and vigor. The sound quality is also quite fine.</p> <p>The booklet contains no libretto, and the English translation of the German text contains surprising typos and is a little incomprehensible. (Hence the 4 stars.) Lovers of Czech opera should get this opera in its original language, but this is an excellent introduction to Smetana's great dramatic work and a chance to hear Leonie Rysanek in her prime. --- Steven Muni, amazon.com</p> <p>download (mp3 @320 kbs):</p> <p><a href="https://yadi.sk/d/nC65abNTqo4VR" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">yandex </a> <a href="http://www.4shared.com/zip/EA-zsE9gba/Smetana_-_Dalibor__Krips_--tBt.html" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">4shared </a> <a href="https://mega.nz/#!GQNFhJYT!DtsIvHl8bR-UJ9JEOhoSqlD0X5iyZCUo71Lq0FBnAF0" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mega </a> <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/so2j5p2lo0kmtq2/Smetana_-_Dalibor_%28Krips%29--tBtJ--%5B1969%5D.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mediafire</a> <a href="http://zalivalka.ru/346565" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">zalivalka </a> <a href="https://cloud.mail.ru/public/7WWL/KrJgivCQA" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">cloudmailru </a> <a href="http://uplea.com/dl/DFB97DBC45298EA" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">uplea </a></p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/javascript:history.back();">back</a></p> Bedrich Smetana - String Quartet No.1-Piano Trio In G Minor 2010-02-25T19:52:40Z 2010-02-25T19:52:40Z http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/en/classical/749-bedrichsmetana/3632-bedrich-smetana-string-quartet-no1-piano-trio-in-g-minor.html bluesever administration@theblues-thatjazz.com <p><strong>Bedrich Smetana - String Quartet No.1 - Piano Trio In G Minor</strong></p> <p><img src="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/ObrMuz/Classical/Smetana/smetana.jpg" border="0" alt="Image could not be displayed. Check browser for compatibility." /></p> <pre><strong><br />String Quartet No.1 In E Minor, Op.115 'From My Life'</strong><em><br />1. Allegro Vivo Appassionato<br />2. Allegro Moderato A La Polka<br />3. Largo Sostenuto<br />4. Vivace<br /></em><br />Alban Berg Quartet<br /><strong><br />Piano Trio In G Minor, Op.15</strong><em><br />1. Moderato Assai<br />2. Allegro Ma Non Agitato - Alternativo I - Alternativo II<br />3. Finale. Presto<br /></em><br />Amati Trio<br /></pre> <p> </p> <p>Smetana completed the String Quartet No. 1 in E minor on December 29, 1876, at a time when he began to realize that his encroaching deafness was unstoppable. The most important aspect of the piece is its autobiographical program, making it, almost certainly, the first chamber music work of its type. It would influence Janacek in his two programmatic quartets, Kreutzer Sonata and Intimate Letters.</p> <p>In a letter to his good friend Joseph Srb-Debrnov, Smetana writes: "My intention was to paint a tone picture of my life." Later, he would describe the work as "more or less a private composition, and therefore deliberately written for four instruments conversing among themselves about the things that torture me, and no more." What tortured Smetana was recurring noise in his ears and the gradual reduction in his hearing. He entitled the work, "Z mého života" (From my life), and watched the first performance of the piece, on March 29, 1879, through opera glasses from the side of the stage.</p> <p>In his letter to Srb-Debrnov, Smetana claims that, "I had no intention of writing any quartet to the customary formulas, on which I worked sufficiently as a student of music theory...." This is curious, as the movements of the E minor Quartet are cast in easily recognizable forms and Smetana maintains the traditional four-movement scheme of the string quartet.</p> <p>Smetana goes on: "The first movement depicts my youthful leanings toward art, the Romantic atmosphere, the inexpressible yearning for something I could neither express nor define, and also a kind of warning of my future misfortune." The movement is in sonata form, the first theme, a passionate viola melody, representing "fate's summons to take part in life's combat." The secondary theme, in G major, depicts "affection for romance in music and love." This theme is transformed just before the beginning of the powerful development. In the recapitulation, Smetana skips the return of the first theme and the transition, beginning instead with the second theme and then pursuing a relatively free course.</p> <p>The second movement, Quasi Polka, is a scherzo in a polka rhythm with fugal passages, depicting "the joyful days of youth when [Smetana] composed dance tunes and was known everywhere as a passionate lover of dancing." Its atmosphere evokes the opening of the overture to The Bartered Bride.</p> <p>Of the third movement, Largo sostenuto, Smetana remarks: ..."[it] reminds me of the happiness of my first love, the girl who later became my faithful wife." The movement is organized as a set of variations on two melodies with interpolated episodes.</p> <p>"The long, insistent note in the finale...is the fateful ringing in my ears of the high-pitched tones which, in 1874, announced the beginning of my deafness." Smetana represents this ringing with a sustained, high E natural in the coda, preceding reminiscences of the first two themes of the first movement. The first part of the sonata-form movement, however, is ebullient, expressing Smetana's joy at "treat[ing] national elements in music."</p> <p> </p> <p>The death of Smetana's daughter Bedriska was the emotional impetus behind the composition of the Trio for Piano and Strings in G minor, Op. 15. After Bedriska succumbed to scarlet fever on September 6, 1855, Smetana was devastated; the composer immersed himself in composition, producing the trio soon enough for it to be performed later that year. Critical response was negative and may have prompted Smetana to revise the piece two years later, despite the fact that Liszt praised the work when he heard it in 1856. It was the most significant piece of chamber music he had composed up to that time, but it was not published until 1879, in Hamburg.</p> <p>The work is in three movements, all of which are in G minor. The first movement is intense and lyrical, and begins with the violin alone playing a theme on the dark G string. The theme's chromatic descent through a perfect fifth evokes a Baroque-era musical symbol for grief. In nineteenth century fashion, however, Smetana extends the melody before arriving at the secondary theme of this gloomy sonata-form movement. The second theme is brighter in character than the first, and this section is further lightened by upward chromatic shifts in harmony. The development section has a central high point, followed by meandering passages that give way to the recapitulation, which brings back the tragic mood.</p> <p>In the ensuing Intermezzo movement we hear references to the first movement. Its principal theme, a polka, seems to suggest the playful Bedriska, although it is derived from the main theme of the first movement. The movement is divided into two alternativo sections, the first of which, pastoral in atmosphere, evokes Schumann. The second of these is more mournful and includes march-like rhythms.</p> <p>For the main theme of the rondo finale, Smetana borrows nearly 100 measures from his own Piano Sonata in G minor of 1846. He also uses a fugato figure from his Characteristic Variations on a Czech Folksong. Buzzing with restless energy, the rondo theme creates a stark contrast to the preceding Intermezzo. This energy, however, is interrupted by sad, lyrical episodes for the cello. Smetana creates rhythmic drive through the simultaneous sounding of duplets and triplets through long passages in the 6/8 time movement. When the secondary theme returns near the end, it is transformed into a funeral march, with drum-like figures as accompaniment. Perhaps surprisingly, the work ends in the major mode.---John Palmer, Rovi</p> <p>download: <a href="http://ul.to/5233cj3m" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">uploaded </a> <a href="http://yadi.sk/d/G4VG2KUjPwskq" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">yandex </a> <a href="http://www.4shared.com/zip/2mwKcU-yba/BdhStn-SQn1PTigm.html" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">4shared </a> <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/7f1e4p741kf7t3r/BdhStn-SQn1PTigm.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mediafire </a> <a href="http://www.solidfiles.com/d/2c16df713b/BdhStn-SQn1PTigm.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">solidfiles</a> <a href="https://mega.co.nz/#!IdlWRQRI!E5MqgwvlXWD9idd7Z_FaPiPUFttkwXGvlFk_GDcASC8" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mega </a> <a href="http://zalivalka.ru/141965" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">zalivalka </a> <a href="http://filecloud.io/q7xo0ced" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">filecloudio</a> <a href="https://anonfiles.com/file/6872d23dbdec7f67858d747a0d805c87" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">anonfiles </a> <a href="https://www.oboom.com/R7MUVIC9/BdhStn-SQn1PTigm.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">oboom </a></p> <p><a href="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/javascript:history.back();">back</a></p> <p><strong>Bedrich Smetana - String Quartet No.1 - Piano Trio In G Minor</strong></p> <p><img src="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/ObrMuz/Classical/Smetana/smetana.jpg" border="0" alt="Image could not be displayed. Check browser for compatibility." /></p> <pre><strong><br />String Quartet No.1 In E Minor, Op.115 'From My Life'</strong><em><br />1. Allegro Vivo Appassionato<br />2. Allegro Moderato A La Polka<br />3. Largo Sostenuto<br />4. Vivace<br /></em><br />Alban Berg Quartet<br /><strong><br />Piano Trio In G Minor, Op.15</strong><em><br />1. Moderato Assai<br />2. Allegro Ma Non Agitato - Alternativo I - Alternativo II<br />3. Finale. Presto<br /></em><br />Amati Trio<br /></pre> <p> </p> <p>Smetana completed the String Quartet No. 1 in E minor on December 29, 1876, at a time when he began to realize that his encroaching deafness was unstoppable. The most important aspect of the piece is its autobiographical program, making it, almost certainly, the first chamber music work of its type. It would influence Janacek in his two programmatic quartets, Kreutzer Sonata and Intimate Letters.</p> <p>In a letter to his good friend Joseph Srb-Debrnov, Smetana writes: "My intention was to paint a tone picture of my life." Later, he would describe the work as "more or less a private composition, and therefore deliberately written for four instruments conversing among themselves about the things that torture me, and no more." What tortured Smetana was recurring noise in his ears and the gradual reduction in his hearing. He entitled the work, "Z mého života" (From my life), and watched the first performance of the piece, on March 29, 1879, through opera glasses from the side of the stage.</p> <p>In his letter to Srb-Debrnov, Smetana claims that, "I had no intention of writing any quartet to the customary formulas, on which I worked sufficiently as a student of music theory...." This is curious, as the movements of the E minor Quartet are cast in easily recognizable forms and Smetana maintains the traditional four-movement scheme of the string quartet.</p> <p>Smetana goes on: "The first movement depicts my youthful leanings toward art, the Romantic atmosphere, the inexpressible yearning for something I could neither express nor define, and also a kind of warning of my future misfortune." The movement is in sonata form, the first theme, a passionate viola melody, representing "fate's summons to take part in life's combat." The secondary theme, in G major, depicts "affection for romance in music and love." This theme is transformed just before the beginning of the powerful development. In the recapitulation, Smetana skips the return of the first theme and the transition, beginning instead with the second theme and then pursuing a relatively free course.</p> <p>The second movement, Quasi Polka, is a scherzo in a polka rhythm with fugal passages, depicting "the joyful days of youth when [Smetana] composed dance tunes and was known everywhere as a passionate lover of dancing." Its atmosphere evokes the opening of the overture to The Bartered Bride.</p> <p>Of the third movement, Largo sostenuto, Smetana remarks: ..."[it] reminds me of the happiness of my first love, the girl who later became my faithful wife." The movement is organized as a set of variations on two melodies with interpolated episodes.</p> <p>"The long, insistent note in the finale...is the fateful ringing in my ears of the high-pitched tones which, in 1874, announced the beginning of my deafness." Smetana represents this ringing with a sustained, high E natural in the coda, preceding reminiscences of the first two themes of the first movement. The first part of the sonata-form movement, however, is ebullient, expressing Smetana's joy at "treat[ing] national elements in music."</p> <p> </p> <p>The death of Smetana's daughter Bedriska was the emotional impetus behind the composition of the Trio for Piano and Strings in G minor, Op. 15. After Bedriska succumbed to scarlet fever on September 6, 1855, Smetana was devastated; the composer immersed himself in composition, producing the trio soon enough for it to be performed later that year. Critical response was negative and may have prompted Smetana to revise the piece two years later, despite the fact that Liszt praised the work when he heard it in 1856. It was the most significant piece of chamber music he had composed up to that time, but it was not published until 1879, in Hamburg.</p> <p>The work is in three movements, all of which are in G minor. The first movement is intense and lyrical, and begins with the violin alone playing a theme on the dark G string. The theme's chromatic descent through a perfect fifth evokes a Baroque-era musical symbol for grief. In nineteenth century fashion, however, Smetana extends the melody before arriving at the secondary theme of this gloomy sonata-form movement. The second theme is brighter in character than the first, and this section is further lightened by upward chromatic shifts in harmony. The development section has a central high point, followed by meandering passages that give way to the recapitulation, which brings back the tragic mood.</p> <p>In the ensuing Intermezzo movement we hear references to the first movement. Its principal theme, a polka, seems to suggest the playful Bedriska, although it is derived from the main theme of the first movement. The movement is divided into two alternativo sections, the first of which, pastoral in atmosphere, evokes Schumann. The second of these is more mournful and includes march-like rhythms.</p> <p>For the main theme of the rondo finale, Smetana borrows nearly 100 measures from his own Piano Sonata in G minor of 1846. He also uses a fugato figure from his Characteristic Variations on a Czech Folksong. Buzzing with restless energy, the rondo theme creates a stark contrast to the preceding Intermezzo. This energy, however, is interrupted by sad, lyrical episodes for the cello. Smetana creates rhythmic drive through the simultaneous sounding of duplets and triplets through long passages in the 6/8 time movement. When the secondary theme returns near the end, it is transformed into a funeral march, with drum-like figures as accompaniment. Perhaps surprisingly, the work ends in the major mode.---John Palmer, Rovi</p> <p>download: <a href="http://ul.to/5233cj3m" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">uploaded </a> <a href="http://yadi.sk/d/G4VG2KUjPwskq" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">yandex </a> <a href="http://www.4shared.com/zip/2mwKcU-yba/BdhStn-SQn1PTigm.html" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">4shared </a> <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/7f1e4p741kf7t3r/BdhStn-SQn1PTigm.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mediafire </a> <a href="http://www.solidfiles.com/d/2c16df713b/BdhStn-SQn1PTigm.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">solidfiles</a> <a href="https://mega.co.nz/#!IdlWRQRI!E5MqgwvlXWD9idd7Z_FaPiPUFttkwXGvlFk_GDcASC8" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mega </a> <a href="http://zalivalka.ru/141965" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">zalivalka </a> <a href="http://filecloud.io/q7xo0ced" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">filecloudio</a> <a href="https://anonfiles.com/file/6872d23dbdec7f67858d747a0d805c87" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">anonfiles </a> <a href="https://www.oboom.com/R7MUVIC9/BdhStn-SQn1PTigm.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">oboom </a></p> <p><a href="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/javascript:history.back();">back</a></p> Bedrich Smetana – Libuse (2009) 2014-05-13T15:54:36Z 2014-05-13T15:54:36Z http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/en/classical/749-bedrichsmetana/16013-bedrich-smetana--libuse-2009.html bluesever administration@theblues-thatjazz.com <p><strong>Bedrich Smetana – Libuse (2009)</strong></p> <p><img src="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/ObrMuz/Classical/Smetana/libuse.jpg" border="0" /></p> <pre>CD 1<em> 1. Overture 00:08:19 2. Act 1 - Libuse´s Judgement - Scene 1: You, Krok´s illustrious daughter 00:08:50 3. Act 1 - Scene 2: I cannot join them! 00:04:17 4. Act 1 - Change of scene. Scene 2: Alas that between sons such confliets... 00:05:48 5. Act 1 - Scene 3 - The procession: The snake is not here 00:20:34 6. Act 2 - Libuse´s Marriage - Scene 1.: Water the horses now and wait for me! 00:18:05 7. Act 2 - Scene 2: My uncle bid me to my father´s grave 00:10:22 </em> CD 2<em> 1. Act 2 - Change of scene - scene 3: Heya! Heya! Without rest onward 00:11:06 2. Act 2 - Scene 4: The work is finished 00:07:35 3. Act 2 - Scene 5: From Libuse we bring you greetings 00:12:38 4. Act 3 - Scene 1: Peace is made again between the two brothers 00:07:51 5. Act 3 - Scene 2: He comes! He still remains hidden.. 00:02:49 6. Act 3 - Scene 3: Welcome to us 00:02:36 7. Act 3 - Scene 4: Did she not say that all the power now... 00:04:39 8. Act 3 - Scene 5: Hail, stronghold of Vysehrad 00:17:25 9. Act 3 - Libuse´s prophecy (with Six Pictures from Bohemia´s History): O Gods almighty 00:02:15 10. Act 3 - Libuse´s prophecy: Picture I: Bretislav and Jitka 00:01:41 11. Act 3 - Libuse´s prophecy: Picture II.: Jaroslav of Sternberk 00:01:39 12. Act 3 - Libuse´s prophecy: Picture III.: Premysl Otakar II., Eliska and Karel IV. 00:01:40 13. Act 3 - Libuse´s prophecy: Picture IV: Zizka, Prokop the Great and the Hussites 00:02:53 14. Act 3 - Libuse´s prophecy: Picture V.: George of Podebrady 00:01:45 15. Act 3 - Libuse´s prophecy: Picture VI - The royal castle in Prague 00:01:50 </em> Nadezda Kniplova (Libuse) Vaclav Bednar (Premysl) Milada Subrtova (Krasava) Vera Soukupova (Radmila) Zdenek Kroupa (Chrudos) Ivo Zídek (Stahlav) Chorus and Orchestra of the Prague National Theatre Jaroslav Krombholc - conductor </pre> <p> </p> <p>The opera Libuše occupies a unique position in Czech national culture. Smetana composed it as a festive opera to be performed on occasions celebrating the Czech nation. The first such was the opening of the National Theatre in Prague in 1881, when the work was premiered. Supraphon’s catalogue already contains CDs of Smetana’s Libuše in two live complete recordings documenting the interpretational mastery of the artists associated with the National Theatre: the legendary recording of the performance in 1983 marking the reopening of the theatre after its reconstruction and featuring Gabriela Beňačková in the lead role, and the 1995 recording of the new production of Libuše at the National, when the lead role was undertaken by Eva Urbanová. Now Supraphon is supplementing these recordings with a hitherto unreleased on CD older studio recording from 1965, when under Jaroslav Krombholc the lead role was rendered by Naděžda Kniplová. ---supraphon.com</p> <p> </p> <p>Joseph Wenzig (1807-76) wrote several plays and opera librettos derived from events (sometimes fictional) in Czech history. Libuše was the second of two librettos he wrote for Smetana, the first being Dalibor. In both cases, Wenzig wrote the libretto in German and it was later translated into Czech by Erwin Špindler. Wenzig finished his Libušas Urtheilsspruch und Vermählung (Libuše's Verdict and Wedding) in the spring of 1866, and Špindler did his best to preserve the original syllabic characteristics and stresses of the German, a task he completed in February 1868. Smetana completed all three acts in full score by November 12, 1872.</p> <p>Wenzig's story is of the legendary Libuše, Princess of Bohemia, whose verdict in a land dispute is refuted by one of the participants, Chrudoš od Otavy, who will not accept the judgement of a woman. This prompts Libuše to take a husband, and she chooses Premsyl ze Stadice. The opera closes with Libuše's prophecies, during which several people from Czech history appear as Libuše comments on them. The monumentality of the piece grows as it progresses, culminating in Libuše's prophesy, "My beloved Czech nation will not perish; gloriously she will vanquish the terrors of hell!"</p> <p>Smetana wished Libuše to be performed in association with an important national celebration, such as the inauguration of the Czech National Theater in Prague. The composer withheld the score until his wish became a reality, and Libuše won the National Theater competition and was first produced there on June 11, 1881. The theater burned down two months later; when it reopened in 1883, it was again inaugurated with Libuše. To this day, Libuše is staged in the Czech Republic for events of national celebration. Smetana did, however, allow the overture to be played as early as April 1872. He never heard Libuše because by the time it was staged; he was deaf. Smetana regarded Libuše as his finest opera.</p> <p>Libuše is Smetana's most ambitious and grand opera and its focus on the greatness of the Czech nation makes it unprecedented. Themes are more closely associated with characters than in any of his other works but, as in Dalibor, they are not employed in a Wagnerian fashion. Two brothers, Stahlav and Chrudoš, each has his own theme but also share a theme, representing their brotherhood. Premsyl and Libuše's themes, both diatonic, mingle when the two come together in Act III. Libuše's music has greater emotional sweep than that for Premsyl and forms a significant part of the multi-sectional overture.</p> <p>Monumentality and grand closes are a salient feature of Libuše, and Smetana achieves both of these through long stretches of static harmony, particularly in the more solemn scenes. An excellent example occurs at the climax in the second scene of the first act, in which Libuše, Radovan, and the chorus sing through an extended passage of tonic harmony, only to be followed by an ever longer passage of dominant pedal with numerous repetitions of the dominant chord producing a powerful cumulative effect. ---John Palmer, Rovi</p> <p>download: <a href="http://ul.to/zrcyjtp0" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">uploaded </a> <a href="http://yadi.sk/d/P91luBl8PxvXE" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">yandex </a> <a href="http://www.4shared.com/zip/wjWyfRRPba/BdrStn-Lbs09.html" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">4shared </a> <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/61yqk6rje3e6d0e/BdrStn-Lbs09.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mediafire </a> <a href="http://www.solidfiles.com/d/b705ac571e/BdrStn-Lbs09.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">solidfiles</a> <a href="https://mega.co.nz/#!8MNzSTLb!FDI87nJiGJ70o-fiEqn2wl-8e0VPUHNm5ZtZi0GEYWM" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mega </a> <a href="http://zalivalka.ru/141994" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">zalivalka </a> <a href="http://filecloud.io/5jaek2t0" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">filecloudio</a> <a href="https://anonfiles.com/file/85c8b1780a367ff1bb6dd5408f6e726d" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">anonfiles </a> <a href="https://www.oboom.com/126ZDO4K/BdrStn-Lbs09.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">oboom </a></p> <p><a href="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/javascript:history.back();">back</a></p> <p><strong>Bedrich Smetana – Libuse (2009)</strong></p> <p><img src="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/ObrMuz/Classical/Smetana/libuse.jpg" border="0" /></p> <pre>CD 1<em> 1. Overture 00:08:19 2. Act 1 - Libuse´s Judgement - Scene 1: You, Krok´s illustrious daughter 00:08:50 3. Act 1 - Scene 2: I cannot join them! 00:04:17 4. Act 1 - Change of scene. Scene 2: Alas that between sons such confliets... 00:05:48 5. Act 1 - Scene 3 - The procession: The snake is not here 00:20:34 6. Act 2 - Libuse´s Marriage - Scene 1.: Water the horses now and wait for me! 00:18:05 7. Act 2 - Scene 2: My uncle bid me to my father´s grave 00:10:22 </em> CD 2<em> 1. Act 2 - Change of scene - scene 3: Heya! Heya! Without rest onward 00:11:06 2. Act 2 - Scene 4: The work is finished 00:07:35 3. Act 2 - Scene 5: From Libuse we bring you greetings 00:12:38 4. Act 3 - Scene 1: Peace is made again between the two brothers 00:07:51 5. Act 3 - Scene 2: He comes! He still remains hidden.. 00:02:49 6. Act 3 - Scene 3: Welcome to us 00:02:36 7. Act 3 - Scene 4: Did she not say that all the power now... 00:04:39 8. Act 3 - Scene 5: Hail, stronghold of Vysehrad 00:17:25 9. Act 3 - Libuse´s prophecy (with Six Pictures from Bohemia´s History): O Gods almighty 00:02:15 10. Act 3 - Libuse´s prophecy: Picture I: Bretislav and Jitka 00:01:41 11. Act 3 - Libuse´s prophecy: Picture II.: Jaroslav of Sternberk 00:01:39 12. Act 3 - Libuse´s prophecy: Picture III.: Premysl Otakar II., Eliska and Karel IV. 00:01:40 13. Act 3 - Libuse´s prophecy: Picture IV: Zizka, Prokop the Great and the Hussites 00:02:53 14. Act 3 - Libuse´s prophecy: Picture V.: George of Podebrady 00:01:45 15. Act 3 - Libuse´s prophecy: Picture VI - The royal castle in Prague 00:01:50 </em> Nadezda Kniplova (Libuse) Vaclav Bednar (Premysl) Milada Subrtova (Krasava) Vera Soukupova (Radmila) Zdenek Kroupa (Chrudos) Ivo Zídek (Stahlav) Chorus and Orchestra of the Prague National Theatre Jaroslav Krombholc - conductor </pre> <p> </p> <p>The opera Libuše occupies a unique position in Czech national culture. Smetana composed it as a festive opera to be performed on occasions celebrating the Czech nation. The first such was the opening of the National Theatre in Prague in 1881, when the work was premiered. Supraphon’s catalogue already contains CDs of Smetana’s Libuše in two live complete recordings documenting the interpretational mastery of the artists associated with the National Theatre: the legendary recording of the performance in 1983 marking the reopening of the theatre after its reconstruction and featuring Gabriela Beňačková in the lead role, and the 1995 recording of the new production of Libuše at the National, when the lead role was undertaken by Eva Urbanová. Now Supraphon is supplementing these recordings with a hitherto unreleased on CD older studio recording from 1965, when under Jaroslav Krombholc the lead role was rendered by Naděžda Kniplová. ---supraphon.com</p> <p> </p> <p>Joseph Wenzig (1807-76) wrote several plays and opera librettos derived from events (sometimes fictional) in Czech history. Libuše was the second of two librettos he wrote for Smetana, the first being Dalibor. In both cases, Wenzig wrote the libretto in German and it was later translated into Czech by Erwin Špindler. Wenzig finished his Libušas Urtheilsspruch und Vermählung (Libuše's Verdict and Wedding) in the spring of 1866, and Špindler did his best to preserve the original syllabic characteristics and stresses of the German, a task he completed in February 1868. Smetana completed all three acts in full score by November 12, 1872.</p> <p>Wenzig's story is of the legendary Libuše, Princess of Bohemia, whose verdict in a land dispute is refuted by one of the participants, Chrudoš od Otavy, who will not accept the judgement of a woman. This prompts Libuše to take a husband, and she chooses Premsyl ze Stadice. The opera closes with Libuše's prophecies, during which several people from Czech history appear as Libuše comments on them. The monumentality of the piece grows as it progresses, culminating in Libuše's prophesy, "My beloved Czech nation will not perish; gloriously she will vanquish the terrors of hell!"</p> <p>Smetana wished Libuše to be performed in association with an important national celebration, such as the inauguration of the Czech National Theater in Prague. The composer withheld the score until his wish became a reality, and Libuše won the National Theater competition and was first produced there on June 11, 1881. The theater burned down two months later; when it reopened in 1883, it was again inaugurated with Libuše. To this day, Libuše is staged in the Czech Republic for events of national celebration. Smetana did, however, allow the overture to be played as early as April 1872. He never heard Libuše because by the time it was staged; he was deaf. Smetana regarded Libuše as his finest opera.</p> <p>Libuše is Smetana's most ambitious and grand opera and its focus on the greatness of the Czech nation makes it unprecedented. Themes are more closely associated with characters than in any of his other works but, as in Dalibor, they are not employed in a Wagnerian fashion. Two brothers, Stahlav and Chrudoš, each has his own theme but also share a theme, representing their brotherhood. Premsyl and Libuše's themes, both diatonic, mingle when the two come together in Act III. Libuše's music has greater emotional sweep than that for Premsyl and forms a significant part of the multi-sectional overture.</p> <p>Monumentality and grand closes are a salient feature of Libuše, and Smetana achieves both of these through long stretches of static harmony, particularly in the more solemn scenes. An excellent example occurs at the climax in the second scene of the first act, in which Libuše, Radovan, and the chorus sing through an extended passage of tonic harmony, only to be followed by an ever longer passage of dominant pedal with numerous repetitions of the dominant chord producing a powerful cumulative effect. ---John Palmer, Rovi</p> <p>download: <a href="http://ul.to/zrcyjtp0" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">uploaded </a> <a href="http://yadi.sk/d/P91luBl8PxvXE" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">yandex </a> <a href="http://www.4shared.com/zip/wjWyfRRPba/BdrStn-Lbs09.html" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">4shared </a> <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/61yqk6rje3e6d0e/BdrStn-Lbs09.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mediafire </a> <a href="http://www.solidfiles.com/d/b705ac571e/BdrStn-Lbs09.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">solidfiles</a> <a href="https://mega.co.nz/#!8MNzSTLb!FDI87nJiGJ70o-fiEqn2wl-8e0VPUHNm5ZtZi0GEYWM" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mega </a> <a href="http://zalivalka.ru/141994" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">zalivalka </a> <a href="http://filecloud.io/5jaek2t0" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">filecloudio</a> <a href="https://anonfiles.com/file/85c8b1780a367ff1bb6dd5408f6e726d" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">anonfiles </a> <a href="https://www.oboom.com/126ZDO4K/BdrStn-Lbs09.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">oboom </a></p> <p><a href="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/javascript:history.back();">back</a></p> Bedrich Smetana – Ma Vlast (Ancerl) [1969] 2009-10-25T23:53:31Z 2009-10-25T23:53:31Z http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/en/classical/749-bedrichsmetana/1961-smetanamavlast.html bluesever administration@theblues-thatjazz.com <p><strong>Bedrich Smetana – Ma Vlast (Ancerl) [1969]</strong></p> <p><img src="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/ObrMuz/Classical/Smetana/mavlastancerl.jpg" border="0" /></p> <pre>Ma Vlast (My Homeland) <em> 1. Vysehrad (The High Castle) 2. Vltava (Moldau) 3. Sarka 4. Z ceskych luhu a haju (From Bohemian fields and groves) 5. Tabor 6. Blanik </em> Boston Symphony Orchestra Karel Ancerl - conductor August 1969 Live broadcast </pre> <p> </p> <p>Má Vlast is made up of six tone poems all relating to Smetana's beloved Bohemia. The composer was struck deaf early in 1874, just before beginning the first piece in the set, and thus composed the entire work unable to hear a single note of it. Although its individual components are sometimes performed and recorded separately, most commonly the second in the set, The Moldau, the composer intended them as a single entity, to be performed like a suite or symphony. Thus played, the six parts of the work require about 75 minutes. The first, Vysehrad, pertains to a huge, historic rock along the Vltava River, near Prague. It opens with harps intoning a stately theme, the music growing more grandly noble as it proceeds. The mood soon turns somewhat agitated and heroic, before a reprise of the opening closes out Vysehrad.</p> <p>The next work, Vltava (The Moldau), begins with pairs of swirling flutes and clarinets depicting the two springs feeding the Moldau. Soon the famous main theme, based on the Swedish folk song Ack, Värmland du sköna, is presented. Horns and trumpets introduce a heroic mood to portray the Forest Hunt, which is followed by folk-like music in the "Peasant Wedding." Subdued, nocturnal music permeates "Moonlight: Dance of the Water Nymphs," while "the Rapids" is vigorous and stormy. The river theme returns, but soon gives way to a reprise of the main Vysehrad theme.</p> <p>Sárka portrays the famous female rebel resentful of male authority, who takes revenge on her unfaithful lover. The tempestuous opening depicts Sárka's anger, while the ensuing march music describes her lover, Ctirad, and his soldier-companions. The lyrical section that follows expresses Ctirad's love for Sárka, while the ensuing festive gaiety enacts the drunken revelry of the soldiers. The dramatic final section brilliantly depicts Sárka's slaughter of Ctirad and his men.</p> <p>The fourth, Bohemia's Woods and Meadows, opens busily, but as if winding down, the music representing one's arrival in the country. In the ensuing calm, the mood subtly changes from playful to gossamer and mysterious, and then to festive, the last section portraying a peasant festival.</p> <p>The final two works, Tábor and Blanik, are related both musically and programmatically. The city of Tábor was a fifteenth century Hussite stronghold, and the music here depicts the famous rebellion there. Smetana uses the theme from the Hussite chorale Ye Who Are God's Warriors and fashions a defiant, stirring, often heroic portrait of the ill-fated uprising. In the final piece, the same theme is used, but now to depict the defeated Hussites, who flee to Blanik mountain. There they sleep and eventually aid in the restoration of the Czech nation. The music is mostly pastoral in the first half and colorfully triumphant in the latter portion, especially in the return of the Vysehrad melody. ---Robert Cummings, Rovi</p> <p>download: <a href="http://ul.to/b86my3ew" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">uploaded </a> <a href="http://yadi.sk/d/V6_qxBpBPxdra" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">yandex </a> <a href="http://www.4shared.com/zip/Q5KFkA9Aba/BdrSmn-MV-KA69.html" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">4shared </a> <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/sa13r36b1dzfmzo/BdrSmn-MV-KA69.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mediafire </a> <a href="http://www.solidfiles.com/d/bac38c0826/BdrSmn-MV-KA69.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">solidfiles</a> <a href="https://mega.co.nz/#!BB0DyJAZ!QnFMOGfew6BODT0smjn0HRbq8E8O8l22CvyQPfhL920" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mega </a> <a href="http://zalivalka.ru/141989" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">zalivalka </a> <a href="http://filecloud.io/wftkylmu" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">filecloudio</a> <a href="https://anonfiles.com/file/8f06fb950be4943bc76b991b85375443" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">anonfiles </a> <a href="https://www.oboom.com/L7JAU1R8/BdrSmn-MV-KA69.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">oboom </a></p> <p><a href="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/javascript:history.back();">back</a></p> <p><strong>Bedrich Smetana – Ma Vlast (Ancerl) [1969]</strong></p> <p><img src="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/ObrMuz/Classical/Smetana/mavlastancerl.jpg" border="0" /></p> <pre>Ma Vlast (My Homeland) <em> 1. Vysehrad (The High Castle) 2. Vltava (Moldau) 3. Sarka 4. Z ceskych luhu a haju (From Bohemian fields and groves) 5. Tabor 6. Blanik </em> Boston Symphony Orchestra Karel Ancerl - conductor August 1969 Live broadcast </pre> <p> </p> <p>Má Vlast is made up of six tone poems all relating to Smetana's beloved Bohemia. The composer was struck deaf early in 1874, just before beginning the first piece in the set, and thus composed the entire work unable to hear a single note of it. Although its individual components are sometimes performed and recorded separately, most commonly the second in the set, The Moldau, the composer intended them as a single entity, to be performed like a suite or symphony. Thus played, the six parts of the work require about 75 minutes. The first, Vysehrad, pertains to a huge, historic rock along the Vltava River, near Prague. It opens with harps intoning a stately theme, the music growing more grandly noble as it proceeds. The mood soon turns somewhat agitated and heroic, before a reprise of the opening closes out Vysehrad.</p> <p>The next work, Vltava (The Moldau), begins with pairs of swirling flutes and clarinets depicting the two springs feeding the Moldau. Soon the famous main theme, based on the Swedish folk song Ack, Värmland du sköna, is presented. Horns and trumpets introduce a heroic mood to portray the Forest Hunt, which is followed by folk-like music in the "Peasant Wedding." Subdued, nocturnal music permeates "Moonlight: Dance of the Water Nymphs," while "the Rapids" is vigorous and stormy. The river theme returns, but soon gives way to a reprise of the main Vysehrad theme.</p> <p>Sárka portrays the famous female rebel resentful of male authority, who takes revenge on her unfaithful lover. The tempestuous opening depicts Sárka's anger, while the ensuing march music describes her lover, Ctirad, and his soldier-companions. The lyrical section that follows expresses Ctirad's love for Sárka, while the ensuing festive gaiety enacts the drunken revelry of the soldiers. The dramatic final section brilliantly depicts Sárka's slaughter of Ctirad and his men.</p> <p>The fourth, Bohemia's Woods and Meadows, opens busily, but as if winding down, the music representing one's arrival in the country. In the ensuing calm, the mood subtly changes from playful to gossamer and mysterious, and then to festive, the last section portraying a peasant festival.</p> <p>The final two works, Tábor and Blanik, are related both musically and programmatically. The city of Tábor was a fifteenth century Hussite stronghold, and the music here depicts the famous rebellion there. Smetana uses the theme from the Hussite chorale Ye Who Are God's Warriors and fashions a defiant, stirring, often heroic portrait of the ill-fated uprising. In the final piece, the same theme is used, but now to depict the defeated Hussites, who flee to Blanik mountain. There they sleep and eventually aid in the restoration of the Czech nation. The music is mostly pastoral in the first half and colorfully triumphant in the latter portion, especially in the return of the Vysehrad melody. ---Robert Cummings, Rovi</p> <p>download: <a href="http://ul.to/b86my3ew" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">uploaded </a> <a href="http://yadi.sk/d/V6_qxBpBPxdra" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">yandex </a> <a href="http://www.4shared.com/zip/Q5KFkA9Aba/BdrSmn-MV-KA69.html" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">4shared </a> <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/sa13r36b1dzfmzo/BdrSmn-MV-KA69.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mediafire </a> <a href="http://www.solidfiles.com/d/bac38c0826/BdrSmn-MV-KA69.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">solidfiles</a> <a href="https://mega.co.nz/#!BB0DyJAZ!QnFMOGfew6BODT0smjn0HRbq8E8O8l22CvyQPfhL920" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mega </a> <a href="http://zalivalka.ru/141989" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">zalivalka </a> <a href="http://filecloud.io/wftkylmu" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">filecloudio</a> <a href="https://anonfiles.com/file/8f06fb950be4943bc76b991b85375443" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">anonfiles </a> <a href="https://www.oboom.com/L7JAU1R8/BdrSmn-MV-KA69.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">oboom </a></p> <p><a href="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/javascript:history.back();">back</a></p> Smetana – Prodana Nevesta (The Bartered Bride) [1995] 2014-05-16T16:11:53Z 2014-05-16T16:11:53Z http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/en/classical/749-bedrichsmetana/16028-smetana--prodana-nevesta-the-bartered-bride-1995.html bluesever administration@theblues-thatjazz.com <p><strong>Smetana – Prodana Nevesta (The Bartered Bride) [1995]</strong></p> <p><img src="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/ObrMuz/Classical/Smetana/prodananevesta.jpg" border="0" /></p> <pre>CD 1<em> 1. The Bartered Bride. A Comic Opera in Three Acts 02:09:01 1. Overture 00:06:09 2. Act 1, Scene 1 "Let us rejoice, let´s be merry" 00:07:44 3. Act 1, Scene 2 Recitativo "It will then happen like I have been told!" 00:01:09 4. Act 1, Scene 2 Aria "Should I ever happen to learn something like that about you" 00:03:25 5. Act 1, Scene 2 Recitativo "It´s only true that your past life seems to be veiled in a sort of mystery" 00:00:39 6. Act 1, Scene 2 Duetto "While a mother´s love means blessing, painful is a stepmother´s hate ..." 00:02:13 7. Act 1, Scene 2 Duetto "Faithful love cannot be marred by any former pledge or promise" 00:03:39 8. Act 1, Scene 3 "As I´m saying, my dear fellow ..." 00:05:00 9. Act 1, Scene 3 Recitativo "Of course, I know Tobias Micha since my childhood" 00:00:44 10. Act 1, Scene 3 Terzetto "He´s well brought up and decent ..." 00:03:42 11. Act 1, Scene 4 Quartetto "Here she´s coming!" 00:04:38 12. Act 1, Scene 4 Recitativo "Jenik will not give in ..." 00:01:23 13. Act 1, Scene 5 Finale - Polka and Chorus "Come on, girl, let´s be merry ..." 00:04:07 14. Act 2, Scene 1 "Beer´s no doubt a gift from heaven ..." 00:04:54 15. Act 2, Scene 1 - Furiant 00:02:06 16. Act 2, Scene 2 "My-my-my mother dear sa-sa-said to me..." 00:02:12 17. Act 2, Scene 3 Recitativo "You are surely Marenka Krusinova´s bridegroom?" 00:01:18 18. Act 2, Scene 3 Duetto "I know a maiden fair whose love for you is boundless ..." 00:05:50 </em> CD 2<em> 1. The Bartered Bride. A Comic Opera in Three Acts 02:09:01 1. Act 2, Scene 4 Recitativo "As I say, she´s lovely, sweet and also rich ..." 00:00:37 2. Act 2, Scene 4 Duetto "Now then, my dear man ..." 00:08:01 3. Act 2, Scene 4 Recitativo "And if you renounce Marenka I shall also pay you something" 00:03:14 4. Act 2, Scene 5 " When you find out for whom you have bought a bride. you will sadly return home" 00:03:41 5. Act 2, Scene 6 Finale "Come inside, people ..." 00:03:51 6. Act 3, Scene 1 "I...I can´t get it off my,my mind" 00:03:50 7. Act 3, Scene 2 March of the comedians. Recitativo "We announce to the public ..." 00:01:41 8. Act 3, Scene 2 - Skocna. Dance of the Comedians 00:04:44 9. Act 3, Scene 2 Recitativo "Oh, oh, oh, oh, that will be lovely ..." 00:03:52 10. Act 3, Scene 3 Duetto "We shall make a graceful little bear of you ..." 00:01:31 11. Act 3, Scene 4 Recitativo "Oh, dear me, dear me !" 00:03:16 12. Act 3, Scene 4 "No, no, I don´t believe ..." 00:04:02 13. Act 3, Scene 4 "Hey Vasel, hey Vasicek ..." 00:01:11 14. Act 3, Scene 5 Sextetto "Make up your mind, Marenka, take your time ..." 00:03:02 15. Act 3, Scene 6 "Oh, what a grief!" 00:05:44 16. Act 3, Scene 7 "Marenka mine - Are you really so stubborn, dear ..." 00:04:04 17. Act 3, Scene 8 Recitativo "Well, so you are still here, my young man?" 00:01:02 18. Act 3, Scene 8 Terzetto "Calm down, calm down, dear, calm down" 00:03:30 19. Act 3, Scene 9 Finale " What have you decided, Marenka?" 00:04:07 20. Act 3, Scene 10 "Save yourselves! The bear has got loose!" 00:00:44 21. Act 3, Scene 10 "Remember, neighbour!" 00:01:54 </em> Drahomira Tikalova(Marzenka) Ivo Zidek (Jenik) Eduard Haken (Kecal) Oldrzich Kovarz (Vaszek) Stepanka Stepanova (Hata) Jaroslav Horacek (Micha) Vaclav Bednarz (Krusina) Jaroslava Dobra (Ludmila) Prague National Theatre Chorus &amp; Orchestra Zenek Chalabala - conductor </pre> <p> </p> <p>The first thing to notice about this delightful 1959 performance is that it is in Czech. I make this point because, in the West, we frequently hear this opera only in German (of which there is still a fine 1962 recording on EMI Classics). Yet, Smetana’s lines are intimately tuned to the Czech language, which is clear as a bell here.</p> <p>This may be the best comic opera between Rossini and Gilbert and Sullivan and why it is not more often performed I know not. An LP of this recording was my introduction to Smetana’s comic world, and I have only recently seen a number of productions, two of which moved the time to the early-Communist-grey period, and Smetana survived them all. I find, nonetheless, that I return to this performance because it still reaches out to me, not in the exaggerated way we sometimes get in buffo opera, where singers overact to make sure we get the point, but with some subtlety and nuance, and I think that has to do with the singers’ use of the language, whose every inflection they own. Above all, this is a performance with a great deal of joy.</p> <p>In a sense, the star here is Chalabala, perhaps the most experienced pit conductor of his day in then-Czechoslovakia. He keeps things moving without giving the impression that he thinks this is a new-style Baroque opera. The balance between singers and orchestra is reasonable and the sound is clean.</p> <p>Not all the singers are flawless, of course, but none is false to his or her character. Eduard Haken was the grand bass of the Prague stage, often associated with the operas of Dvorák and Janácek, and if he is occasionally pressed by some of Kecal’s high notes, he knows everything about this wheeler-dealer. Ivo Žídek, eventually also widely known for his work in Janácek, is a most ardent and clever suitor to the put-upon but spirited Marenka of Drahomira Tikalova, and Oldrich Kovár’s Vašek stutters appealingly without sounding like a fool. Though a studio recording, this is very much a performance honed in the theater.</p> <p>A detail I have not been able to resolve is the question of the orchestra. On the issue reviewed here, the orchestra is given as the Czech Philharmonic. On the Supraphon re-release (Supraphon 40), the orchestra is called the Prague National Theatre Orchestra, which I believe to have been the orchestra actually used, as the Czech Philharmonic separated from the opera in 1901. Whichever it was, it plays excellently for Chalabala.---FANFARE, Alan Swanson</p> <p>download: <a href="http://ul.to/ivs5rhym" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">uploaded </a> <a href="http://yadi.sk/d/2YgHQxetPyEJp" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">yandex </a> <a href="http://www.4shared.com/zip/v4z_Ym1eba/BdhSmt-PN-TBB95.html" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">4shared </a> <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/5cz40va89at5v4j/BdhSmt-PN-TBB95.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mediafire </a> <a href="http://www.solidfiles.com/d/e2342ade1d/BdhSmt-PN-TBB95.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">solidfiles</a> <a href="https://mega.co.nz/#!xVNF3ZRI!cz2N0CC00of4xdx67r6o2mOXpp4y_4eBuib5gqEJxkk" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mega </a> <a href="http://zalivalka.ru/142004" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">zalivalka </a> <a href="http://filecloud.io/t9cpf3bj" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">filecloudio</a> <a href="https://anonfiles.com/file/2dfb391ad007cac2bd856015fdeeaa17" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">anonfiles </a> <a href="https://www.oboom.com/EEHRBEUU/BdhSmt-PN-TBB95.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">oboom </a></p> <p><a href="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/javascript:history.back();">back</a></p> <p><strong>Smetana – Prodana Nevesta (The Bartered Bride) [1995]</strong></p> <p><img src="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/ObrMuz/Classical/Smetana/prodananevesta.jpg" border="0" /></p> <pre>CD 1<em> 1. The Bartered Bride. A Comic Opera in Three Acts 02:09:01 1. Overture 00:06:09 2. Act 1, Scene 1 "Let us rejoice, let´s be merry" 00:07:44 3. Act 1, Scene 2 Recitativo "It will then happen like I have been told!" 00:01:09 4. Act 1, Scene 2 Aria "Should I ever happen to learn something like that about you" 00:03:25 5. Act 1, Scene 2 Recitativo "It´s only true that your past life seems to be veiled in a sort of mystery" 00:00:39 6. Act 1, Scene 2 Duetto "While a mother´s love means blessing, painful is a stepmother´s hate ..." 00:02:13 7. Act 1, Scene 2 Duetto "Faithful love cannot be marred by any former pledge or promise" 00:03:39 8. Act 1, Scene 3 "As I´m saying, my dear fellow ..." 00:05:00 9. Act 1, Scene 3 Recitativo "Of course, I know Tobias Micha since my childhood" 00:00:44 10. Act 1, Scene 3 Terzetto "He´s well brought up and decent ..." 00:03:42 11. Act 1, Scene 4 Quartetto "Here she´s coming!" 00:04:38 12. Act 1, Scene 4 Recitativo "Jenik will not give in ..." 00:01:23 13. Act 1, Scene 5 Finale - Polka and Chorus "Come on, girl, let´s be merry ..." 00:04:07 14. Act 2, Scene 1 "Beer´s no doubt a gift from heaven ..." 00:04:54 15. Act 2, Scene 1 - Furiant 00:02:06 16. Act 2, Scene 2 "My-my-my mother dear sa-sa-said to me..." 00:02:12 17. Act 2, Scene 3 Recitativo "You are surely Marenka Krusinova´s bridegroom?" 00:01:18 18. Act 2, Scene 3 Duetto "I know a maiden fair whose love for you is boundless ..." 00:05:50 </em> CD 2<em> 1. The Bartered Bride. A Comic Opera in Three Acts 02:09:01 1. Act 2, Scene 4 Recitativo "As I say, she´s lovely, sweet and also rich ..." 00:00:37 2. Act 2, Scene 4 Duetto "Now then, my dear man ..." 00:08:01 3. Act 2, Scene 4 Recitativo "And if you renounce Marenka I shall also pay you something" 00:03:14 4. Act 2, Scene 5 " When you find out for whom you have bought a bride. you will sadly return home" 00:03:41 5. Act 2, Scene 6 Finale "Come inside, people ..." 00:03:51 6. Act 3, Scene 1 "I...I can´t get it off my,my mind" 00:03:50 7. Act 3, Scene 2 March of the comedians. Recitativo "We announce to the public ..." 00:01:41 8. Act 3, Scene 2 - Skocna. Dance of the Comedians 00:04:44 9. Act 3, Scene 2 Recitativo "Oh, oh, oh, oh, that will be lovely ..." 00:03:52 10. Act 3, Scene 3 Duetto "We shall make a graceful little bear of you ..." 00:01:31 11. Act 3, Scene 4 Recitativo "Oh, dear me, dear me !" 00:03:16 12. Act 3, Scene 4 "No, no, I don´t believe ..." 00:04:02 13. Act 3, Scene 4 "Hey Vasel, hey Vasicek ..." 00:01:11 14. Act 3, Scene 5 Sextetto "Make up your mind, Marenka, take your time ..." 00:03:02 15. Act 3, Scene 6 "Oh, what a grief!" 00:05:44 16. Act 3, Scene 7 "Marenka mine - Are you really so stubborn, dear ..." 00:04:04 17. Act 3, Scene 8 Recitativo "Well, so you are still here, my young man?" 00:01:02 18. Act 3, Scene 8 Terzetto "Calm down, calm down, dear, calm down" 00:03:30 19. Act 3, Scene 9 Finale " What have you decided, Marenka?" 00:04:07 20. Act 3, Scene 10 "Save yourselves! The bear has got loose!" 00:00:44 21. Act 3, Scene 10 "Remember, neighbour!" 00:01:54 </em> Drahomira Tikalova(Marzenka) Ivo Zidek (Jenik) Eduard Haken (Kecal) Oldrzich Kovarz (Vaszek) Stepanka Stepanova (Hata) Jaroslav Horacek (Micha) Vaclav Bednarz (Krusina) Jaroslava Dobra (Ludmila) Prague National Theatre Chorus &amp; Orchestra Zenek Chalabala - conductor </pre> <p> </p> <p>The first thing to notice about this delightful 1959 performance is that it is in Czech. I make this point because, in the West, we frequently hear this opera only in German (of which there is still a fine 1962 recording on EMI Classics). Yet, Smetana’s lines are intimately tuned to the Czech language, which is clear as a bell here.</p> <p>This may be the best comic opera between Rossini and Gilbert and Sullivan and why it is not more often performed I know not. An LP of this recording was my introduction to Smetana’s comic world, and I have only recently seen a number of productions, two of which moved the time to the early-Communist-grey period, and Smetana survived them all. I find, nonetheless, that I return to this performance because it still reaches out to me, not in the exaggerated way we sometimes get in buffo opera, where singers overact to make sure we get the point, but with some subtlety and nuance, and I think that has to do with the singers’ use of the language, whose every inflection they own. Above all, this is a performance with a great deal of joy.</p> <p>In a sense, the star here is Chalabala, perhaps the most experienced pit conductor of his day in then-Czechoslovakia. He keeps things moving without giving the impression that he thinks this is a new-style Baroque opera. The balance between singers and orchestra is reasonable and the sound is clean.</p> <p>Not all the singers are flawless, of course, but none is false to his or her character. Eduard Haken was the grand bass of the Prague stage, often associated with the operas of Dvorák and Janácek, and if he is occasionally pressed by some of Kecal’s high notes, he knows everything about this wheeler-dealer. Ivo Žídek, eventually also widely known for his work in Janácek, is a most ardent and clever suitor to the put-upon but spirited Marenka of Drahomira Tikalova, and Oldrich Kovár’s Vašek stutters appealingly without sounding like a fool. Though a studio recording, this is very much a performance honed in the theater.</p> <p>A detail I have not been able to resolve is the question of the orchestra. On the issue reviewed here, the orchestra is given as the Czech Philharmonic. On the Supraphon re-release (Supraphon 40), the orchestra is called the Prague National Theatre Orchestra, which I believe to have been the orchestra actually used, as the Czech Philharmonic separated from the opera in 1901. Whichever it was, it plays excellently for Chalabala.---FANFARE, Alan Swanson</p> <p>download: <a href="http://ul.to/ivs5rhym" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">uploaded </a> <a href="http://yadi.sk/d/2YgHQxetPyEJp" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">yandex </a> <a href="http://www.4shared.com/zip/v4z_Ym1eba/BdhSmt-PN-TBB95.html" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">4shared </a> <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/download/5cz40va89at5v4j/BdhSmt-PN-TBB95.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mediafire </a> <a href="http://www.solidfiles.com/d/e2342ade1d/BdhSmt-PN-TBB95.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">solidfiles</a> <a href="https://mega.co.nz/#!xVNF3ZRI!cz2N0CC00of4xdx67r6o2mOXpp4y_4eBuib5gqEJxkk" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">mega </a> <a href="http://zalivalka.ru/142004" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">zalivalka </a> <a href="http://filecloud.io/t9cpf3bj" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">filecloudio</a> <a href="https://anonfiles.com/file/2dfb391ad007cac2bd856015fdeeaa17" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">anonfiles </a> <a href="https://www.oboom.com/EEHRBEUU/BdhSmt-PN-TBB95.zip" target="_blank" onclick="window.open(this.href,'newwin','left=27,width=960,height=720,menubar=1,toolbar=1,scrollbars=1,status=1,resizable=1');return false;">oboom </a></p> <p><a href="http://www.theblues-thatjazz.com/javascript:history.back();">back</a></p>