A9 Martinů. Liszt. Kaprálová. Beethoven

We have begun the season with Suk and Dvořák, composers who were close to each other both professionally and personally. It will therefore be fitting if we close it with another pairing from Czech classical music.

Much has been said and written about the relationship between Bohuslav Martinů and Vítězslava Kaprálová: sometimes these comments are based on the personal correspondence between the two, sometimes they are mere fiction. What is certain, however, is that Martinů was unwaveringly convinced of his student’s great talent and that Kaprálová does not stand in the history of Czech music side by side with the greatest masters only because she died at the young age of 25.

She still managed to live her short life to the full. She studied with Talich and Novák, was the first woman to conduct the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, and wrote over 40 compositions. One of them is Suita Rustica, influenced by Czech folklore and the music of Igor Stravinsky.

Folklore inspirations can also be found in the works of the Neo-Romantic Franz Liszt. His lively Fantasia on Hungarian Folk Melodies [Hungarian Fantasy] and Piano Concerto No. 1 will be performed by George Li, a young American pianist and silver medal winner at the Tchaikovsky Competition.

At the end of our 30th season, we will return to one of the staples in our repertoire, concluding with Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 1 in C major.