October 2010 News Archive
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CONTENTS
Martinů opera Le Jour de Bonté (The Day of Charity / Den dobročinnosti) (H 194): details of event in London on Sunday 14 November 2010 to launch Arco Diva recording
Posted Friday 8 October 2010
In August we posted a web page about the UK release on the Arco Diva label of the first ever recording of Martinů’s opera Le Jour de Bonté (The Day of Charity / Den dobročinnosti) (H 194) .
We have now received further details from Laurence Lewis, Czech Music Direct, of the event on Sunday 14 November 2010 at London’s Leicester Square Theatre to launch the recording. It will begin with live music, the composer’s 1947 Three Madrigals (Duo No 1) for violin & viola (H 313) performed by two members of the Delmé Quartet, Galina Solodchin (violin) and John Underwood (viola). This will be followed by a showing of the Czech film Martinů in America directed in 2000 by Aleš Březina, Director of the Bohuslav Martinů Institute in Prague; an introduction to the opera by Laurence Lewis; and a panel discussion with Jiří Štilec (director of Arco Diva) and Martin Anderson (International Record Review). www.dvorak-society.org
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Czech Centre, Dvořák Society and British Czech & Slovak Association collaborate to present screening of opera film Tomorrow there will be … [Zitra se bude …], Riverside Studios, London, 13 November 2010
Posted Thursday 21 October 2010
An event organised by the Czech Centre London in cooperation with the Dvořák Society and the British Czech & Slovak Association, will give British music and film enthusiasts the chance to see Jan Hřebejk’s film version of “Tomorrow there will be … [Zitra se bude …]”, composer Aleš Březina’s opera about the communist-era show trial of Milada Horáková, the only woman to executed for political “crimes” during that dark period.
Venue, date & time
The event will begin at 3.30pm on Saturday 13 November 2010. Librettist Jiří Nekvasil will be present to introduce the film and take part in a question and answer session to follow. The venue is: Riverside Studios, Crisp Road, Hammersmith, London W6 9RL. The Box Office telephone number is 020 8237 1111 and on-line booking is possible .
This screening is part of the Czech Centre’s New Czech Cinema Festival, which runs from 11 to 26 November at various London venues: see the Czech Centre’s web site for more details .
Milada Horáková
Milada Horáková (1901–1950) was a Czech politician who had been active in the underground Czech resistance during the German occupation. She was arrested by the Gestapo in July 1940, tortured during interrogation and sentenced to death. The sentence was commuted to life imprisonment, from which she was released on the liberation of Czechoslovakia. In 1949 the Communist régime arrested her on trumped up charges and after a show trial she was executed by hanging.
There is a web page about Milada Horáková’s life and trial on the History.com web site which is essential reading if you wish to understand the significance of the trial for post-Velvet Revolution Czech society .
You should also read the Radio Prague web page on the subject .
Aleš Březina, composer
The opera “Tomorrow there will be … [Zitra se bude …]”
Aleš Březina’s opera received its première in April 2008 at the Kolowrat Theatre, Prague. Based on the transcript of the 1950 show trial, the libretto is by Jiří Nekvasil. At the time of the première the opera made quite an impact on Czech audiences and is currently being revived in the 2010–11 National Theatre season, with two performances scheduled at the Kolowrat conducted by Marko Ivanović .
The composer has said about the opera:
“… So the trial for me was the main subject of the opera. I thought it would be good to bring out the theatrical aspect of the trial – because they prepared it as you would prepare a play in the theatre. Someone wrote the words, then you had a director, and then there were the actors who had to learn the lines by heart. And then there were the rehearsals, and then the opening night. And that was just how it was with this trial. …”
Aleš Březina, Radio Prague interview, 15 October 2010
The Czech Centre London
The Czech Centre in London is a non-profit, non-political organisation associated with the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As well as organising cultural events (which are not confined to London), the Centre provides resources for obtaining relevant information about the Czech Republic to students, scholars, business people, tourists and the general public. Why not vist the Centre’s web site and browse the varied and interesting programme ?
The British Czech and Slovak Association
The British Czech and Slovak Association (BCSA) aims to raise public awareness in Britain of Czech and Slovak life in all its aspects: history, arts, literature, economies, politics and sciences. BCSA does this hrough talks, a magazine, social events and newsletters. For further details, please visit the BCSA web site . www.dvorak-society.org
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Supraphon recording of Dvořák Symphonic Poems, conducted Mackerras, wins Gramophone award
Posted 2 October 2010
Supraphon recording of Dvořák Symphonic Poems, performed by the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by our late President Sir Charles Mackerras, wins award for orchestral recording of the year in Gramophone 2010 Awards … . www.dvorak-society.org
