Contents of this Volume
- The power of advocacy in music: The case of Vítězslava Kaprálová ►
- A ‘forgotten’ recording of the Martinů Cello Sonata no.1 ►
- Petr Altrichter: A discography ►
- Vilém Tauský’s ‘uncles’: 1 – Leo Ascher ►
- The significance of music in the birth of the Czechoslovak state ►
- The forgotten generation ►
The power of advocacy in music: The case of Vítězslava Kaprálová
Karla Hartl
Journal of Czech and Slovak Music 27 (2018), pp4–32
The Kapralova Society celebrated its twentieth anniversary in 2018, an opportune time for the author to evaluate the work the society has done in advancing Kaprálová’s cause and re-defining her place in the history of twentieth-century Czech music. This detailed and up-to-date article on the life and music of the Czech composer and conductor incorporates a listing of all works published in the Kaprálová Edition and a comprehensive discography.
A ‘forgotten’ recording of the Martinů Cello Sonata no.1
Gregory Terian
Journal of Czech and Slovak Music 27 (2018), pp33–37
The recording in question was a CBS LP of Debussy, Shostakovich and Martinů cello sonatas performed by the cellist Pierre Fournier and his son, the pianist Jean Fonda. The article reproduces an interview the author had with Fonda about the circumstances of the recording in February 1966. The recording was re-released fifty years later in 2016.
Petr Altrichter: A discography
Peter Herbert
Journal of Czech and Slovak Music 27 (2018), pp38–61
This comprehensive discography of over 140 works is preceded by a brief biographical profile of the Czech conductor.
Vilém Tauský’s ‘uncles’: 1 – Leo Ascher
Richard Beith
Journal of Czech and Slovak Music 27 (2018), pp62–71
Although Moravian-born composer, conductor and teacher Vilém Tauský CBE FGSM (1910–2004) regularly used the word ‘uncle’ in the sense of a respected older gentleman who might or might not be an actual relation, Leo Ascher (1880–1942), composer of operettas, popular songs in the Viennese style and film music, was a ‘genuine’ uncle, and this article expands on information previously published by the Dvořák Society.
The significance of music in the birth of the Czechoslovak state
Patrick Lambert
Journal of Czech and Slovak Music 27 (2018), pp72–100
This article develops an illustrated talk given at the Leamington Music Festival in May 2018 to mark the centenary of the ending of the First World War. An introduction sets the scene with the Habsburg oppression of the war years, and among the subsequent themes discussed are the ‘Dvořák battle’ and the roles played by a host of composers, including Josef Suk, Vítĕzslav Novák, Oskar Nedbal, Ervin Schulhoff and Leoš Janáček. The post-war Czechoslovak Festival in London is covered in detail, and the spotlight is shone on Ema Destinnová and her colourful life during and after the conflict. Comments on the creation of a Czech national anthem and the early presidency of Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk bring the narrative up to the late 1920s.
The forgotten generation
Robert S. Hopkins
Journal of Czech and Slovak Music 27 (2018), pp101–114
The title of this article refers to the years between the First and Second World Wars, a period in people’s perception of Czech music and composers which was often represented exclusively by Bohuslav Martinů and to a lesser extent by the ‘Terezin four’ and Ervin Schulhoff. Here the author makes the case for a reversal of the neglect which was suffered by many of Martinů’s contemporaries, and his survey spans the varied destinies and outputs of more than thirty figures.