Martinu / Czech Philharmonic / Marecek: What Men Live By 1

Martinu / Czech Philharmonic / Marecek: What Men Live By 1 - COMPACT DISCS

Martinu / Czech Philharmonic / Marecek SKU: 36743513
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Title:

What Men Live By 1

Artist:

Martinu / Czech Philharmonic / Marecek

Label:

Supraphon

Product Type:

COMPACT DISCS

UPC:

099925423322

Genre:

Classical

Release Date:

2018-10-19

Number of Discs:

1

Jirí Belohlávek (1946-2017) was an important worldwide ambassador of Bohuslav Martinu's music. For the Supraphon label alone he recorded nearly forty of Martinu's symphonic compositions, concertos, and stage works, and many of these were world premiere recordings. Despite large-scale plans, this recording also represents both the highpoint and the conclusion of Belohlávek's noteworthy discography of Martinu's works. The premiere recording of the opera-pastoral What Men Live By was made from three concert performances in December 2014. Martinu composed it to his own libretto in America at the turn of 1951-52, and he had a clear idea concerning it's performance: "It must not be played 'pathetically', but joyfully... The text strongly tempts one to come up with a very serious, 'deep' conception, but that is not what I had in mind. To me, it is a rather joyful work, and what the listener must feel is not some sort of religious moral (lesson), but instead joy. The moral is in fact in the joy." This recording of the Symphony No. 1 was made in January 2016, and it joins the earlier releases of Symphonies Nos. 3-6. It was part of a planned but unfortunately unfinished complete set of Martinu's late orchestral works. Belohlávek's tenure with the Czech Philharmonic during the last five years of his life was a very happy time for both parties, and it led to the development of new qualities in the orchestra's sound. This recording shall endure as living proof of what was a very special constellation of humanity and artistry.
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