Bohuslav Martinů (1890-1959)

[Luke]

Ariane (a small gem) and the Greek Passion I would probably add with Julietta - The Marriage is also very fine.

Already some kind of a consensus here, because that's what I was about to say too.

[snyprrr]

Agree - thanks for the link; a nice synopsis of Martinu's life and variety of works - now listening to a recent acquisition:

I've never heard No.5. I know No.4 is very magical. Does 5 continue from there? It has quite the reputation, but the DG never made it to cd.

[karlhenning]

Already some kind of a consensus here, because that's what I was about to say too.

Thank you both (I think)! ; )

I've plunged right in and found Amazon third-party sellers of Julietta, Ariane, The Greek Passion & Gilgameš.

[Luke]

Don't worry, you won't be disappointed!

[karlhenning]

I am sure of it! The parenthesis was my wallet talking.

[Archaic Torso of Apollo]

Took me long enough, I know . . . but I've pulled the trigger on Gilgamesh).

Gilgamesh is yet another piece that contradicts the misguided stereotype of Martinu as a happyface feelgood composer. Its bleakness and death-haunted implacability are quite chilling. It evokes the vast deserts of Mesopotamia and the stony harshness of antiquity.

You should also like it if you dig Walton's Belshazzar's Feast or Honegger's Le Roi David - it's that kind of piece.

[Mirror Image]

Took me long enough, I know . . . but I've pulled the trigger on Gilgamesh).

The Epic of Gilgamesh is an excellent work. Do you own this disc, Karl?



This is an excellent recording of two of Martinu's impressionism-inspired creations: Magic Nights and Nipponari. Both are definitely worth hearing as is Czech Rhapsody, which just bursts with youthful exuberance. The conducting of Belohlavek and playing of the Prague Symphony Orchestra are top-notch.

[snyprrr]

I finally heard most of SQ No.7 on YouTube, and I don't know what it is, but I just don't dig M's SQs. I love the Duo No.1, and I'm starting to think that the String Sextet is his deepest chamber work ( ,...I know).

That Virgin disc is goin for like $40 used??? I wasn't going to pay $3 for it!

[karlhenning]

Gilgamesh is yet another piece that contradicts the misguided stereotype of Martinu as a happyface feelgood composer. Its bleakness and death-haunted implacability are quite chilling. It evokes the vast deserts of Mesopotamia and the stony harshness of antiquity.

I've got so much Martinů that has landed, for me to catch up with . . . but right at the moment I am obsessed (happily) with this very-nearly-complete viola sonata.  I did listen to the very first track of Gilgameš — gripping, wonderful stuff!

You should also like it if you dig Walton's Belshazzar's Feast or Honegger's Le Roi David - it's that kind of piece.

I need to revisit both of those . . . I've done pendulum swings on both over the years.

[karlhenning]

The Epic of Gilgamesh is an excellent work. Do you own this disc, Karl?

I do not, though that may prove a matter of time.

[Mirror Image]

I do not, though that may prove a matter of time.

It's a beautiful disc that I think you would enjoy so much since, like me, you're a big Martinu fan.

[DavidW]

Thanks for the recs everyone!  Thanks got busy and I had left, but now I'll be looking into the recordings mentioned.  Especially since my Pettersson cd hasn't arrived yet, I might buy one of those works mentioned on mp3 today, and by today in the next half hour.

[karlhenning]

It's a beautiful disc that I think you would enjoy so much since, like me, you're a big Martinu fan.

I've Wish-Listed it, which I find a good way to be reminded after I shall likely have forgotten ; )

I've already gone against my expectations, and I went ahead and listened to the lovely The Opening of the Wells disc, although I had planned to leave it until after my own Cantata.  But I was in the midst of Viola Sonata, and getting Tempus fungus under way, so the Wells did not seem a likely disruption.

[Archaic Torso of Apollo]

getting to know Juliette

I finally got hold of this recording, and had my first (though incomplete) listen last night:



What stands out the most is how much of Martinu's post-Juliette style you can hear in it. Chunks of it seem to have been incorporated directly into the 6th Symphony, and you hear echoes of the opera in his late (magical, hallucinatory) style. I only listened to the brief orchestral suite and one of the 3 scenes, and was probably too jet-lagged to pay proper attention. But such is my first impression.

I'm beginning to wonder if the 6th Symphony should be considered one of those opera-derived symphonies, like Prokofiev's 3rd, Vaughan Williams' 5th, or Hindemith's Mathis der Maler and Harmonie der Welt.

[Luke]

The 6th does indeed contain direct quotations from Julietta, but I wouldn't say it's an opera-derived piece, any more than (say) Dvorak's Cello Concerto derives from the song of his that he quotes in the last movement. Just as in the Dvorak, in the Martinu the quotations are both self-referential and self-contained: they function like a signature, in a sense. In the Dvorak they seem to say 'writing this made me think about my past'; in the Martinu (remembering that Martinu considered Julietta his best and most important work) they seem to say 'this work is dear to me also.'

[Guido]

The 6th does indeed contain direct quotations from Julietta, but I wouldn't say it's an opera-derived piece, any more than (say) Dvorak's Cello Concerto derives from the song of his that he quotes in the last movement.

(And more prominantly in the second movement.)

Still need to get this and the other Julietta CD.

[just Jeff]

String Quartets w/ the Panocha Quartet - recent arrival and just beginning a second 'more serious' listening to these varied works which were written over nearly a 30-year period (1918 to 1947); the Panocha Q. do not disappoint but DD in recent pages has elegantly express his feelings on these performances; the recorded sound is remarkably good (made from 1979-82) - 

Who is DD may I ask?  And what did they say about these SQs?  I have them spinning on vinyl at the moment, and thought I'd look up comments on the Panocha set myself.

[SonicMan46]

Who is DD may I ask?  And what did they say about these SQs?  I have them spinning on vinyl at the moment, and thought I'd look up comments on the Panocha set myself.

DD = Dancing Divertimentian, i.e. one of our GMG members; go back to the July-August pages of this thread for comments - 

[snyprrr]

Just listening to the Nonet. Mozart of the 20th Century.

[Archaic Torso of Apollo]

Just listening to the Nonet. Mozart of the 20th Century.

Glorious piece - I like it even better than Stravinsky's Octet. And to think he was dying when he wrote it...