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Letter from PragueThe thwarted lover who took his revenge on Dvorak
For many years, I've been observing a rather unusual phenomenon taking
place in Prague. Very likely, there is no other city whose counsellors and
citizens hold such different views regarding the erection of monuments
dedicated to the nation's favourite sons and daughters.
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MailboxMailbox
This week in Mailbox: Festival Mitte Europa; we get back to the use of the
US dollar in Radio Prague's reports; Czech music featured at London Proms.
Listeners quoted: Mukesh Kumar, Don Brazier, Jerry Fridrich, Michael Pober,
Brian Kendall.
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Czech MusicEncore: From Dvorak's Irish inspiration to 17th century "BohemianVespers"
In this programme we look at a new set of CDs of Dvorak's choral work, we
find out a bit more about the Czech-born composer whose work was played at
Mozart's memorial service in Prague and we enjoy a new CD of Bohemian
church music.
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Czech MusicEncore: Finding an answer to Dvorak's "Question"
A new CD brings Dvorak's piano compositions to a broader audience; the
Smetana Trio revives Novak's Trio in D minor, and a historic Prague Spring
recording is available at last.
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Czech MusicEncore: From 17th century hymns to Martinu - some interesting new Czech recordings
Today we look at some very diverse recordings - from a 17th century hymnal,
to a marvelous - but hard to find - CD of Martinu and Brahms by one of the
Czech Republic's best cellists, Jiri Barta. And we also look at a
re-released recording of Dvorak's Fifth Symphony, still sounding fresh
after over fifty years.
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SpecialMusic for Easter: Dvorak's Stabat Mater - one of the most powerful declarations of faith in musical history.
Antonin Dvorak's Stabat Mater has to be one of the most beautiful and most
moving pieces of music ever to come out of the Czech lands. The text is a
devotional poem written in Latin in the 13th century, probably by the
Franciscan monk Jacopone da Todi. It opens with the grief of the Virgin
Mary at Christ's crucifixion, but then turns into a prayer, written in the
first person and addressed to the Virgin - in which the writer longs to be
reunited with Christ. The poem ends with the hope of the resurrection. The
poetry is powerful in its very simplicity.
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Current AffairsYoung American Conductor Steps Up to Czech Podium
Marlon Daniel is on a roll. The young American conductor recently played
New York's Lincoln Centre, and made his debut at Carnegie Hall in
December. Now, this Tuesday night he'll have another 'first' when he
conducts the Praga Sinfonietta in the Dvorak Hall of Prague's famed
Rudolfinum. Kate Barrette met with Marlon between classes at the Prague
Conservatory of Music to find out more...
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Current AffairsDvorak and his love of the Spiritual
Welcome to a special Christmas Eve programme from Radio Prague. I'm David
Vaughan. Continuing a tradition that we started last year, we're going to
be meeting members of a school choir here in Prague. They're pupils from
the Akademicke Gymnazium, just off Wenceslas Square, one of the oldest
grammar schools in the world and a school with a rich tradition. Last year
we heard Christmas Carols, but this year we'll bring you something a little
different. As the centenary year of the death of the great Czech composer,
Antonin Dvorak, draws to a close, we'll be hearing the choir sing some of
his choral music, but also, we'll be hearing some of the Gospel music that
inspired Dvorak during his stay in the United States in the 1890s. So the
theme won't exactly be Christmas, but there certainly is a strong
spiritual thread to today's programme.
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Current AffairsWorld musicologists discuss aspects of Dvorak's music in Prague
The year 2004 is very special for Czech music. Czechs commemorate the 100th
anniversary of the death of their most famous composer Antonin Dvorak.
Many
musical events, not only in the Czech Republic, but also around the world,
are featuring his music. Yet Antonin Dvorak's music has not only been
played at concerts and festivals, it was also discussed by leading world
Dvorak experts at an international conference in Prague last week. More
Czech MusicEncore: Dvorak's Rusalka and her rather small lake
This week we talk with the Czech musicologist Jiri Strelec about Dvorak's
much-loved opera, Rusalka. The opera is about a water-nymph, who, through
a witch's magic spell, leaves her underwater home to live on land - but
with tragic results. More
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