Welcome to Building a Classical Music Collection, where we have arrived at number 13 on our way to the complete list of the top 50 classical music recordings of all-time. Checking in at #13 is my favorite recording of Bedrich Smetana’s Ma Vlast (My Fatherland) performed by the Boston Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Rafael Kubelik from 1971 on the Deutsche Grammophon label. Ma Vlast is a six-part cycle of tone poems depicting scenes from Smetana’s beloved Bohemia.
The Composer
Bedrich Smetana was born in 1824 in what was then Bohemia (now the western half of the Czech Republic), and died in an asylum in Prague in 1884. He is widely considered in his homeland to be the “Father of Czech Music” (although Dvorak and his advocates may object to that designation). In any case, Smetana was certainly one of the leaders of the movement toward musical nationalism.
As a youth, Bedrich was not a good student except when it came to music. The famous composer and pianist Franz Liszt assisted Smetana in getting some of his music published, and later Smetana opened his own piano school. In 1860, Bohemia was granted autonomy by the Austro-Hungarian Empire and in the arts there was a desire to find some genuine “Czech” voices. A national theater was built, and soon thereafter Smetana composed his first opera The Brandenburgers in Bohemia, which was premiered in 1866. It was a success, and he very soon thereafter composed The Bartered Bride which was to become his most popular and enduring opera, even though the opera was a failure when it premiered in 1866.
Ma Vlast
In 1874, Smetana had developed a ringing in his ears, a symptom from syphilis, that led to his complete deafness by the end of that year. It was during this time from 1874 to 1879 that he composed this symphonic masterpiece Ma Vlast. Unfortunately, there was lingering brain damage from the same syphilis that eventually led him to madness, and he died in an asylum in 1884. A period of national mourning was proclaimed, and he was buried at Vyshehrad, one of the sites from Ma Vlast.
The six parts of Ma Vlast are as follows:
I. Vyeshrad (The High Castle) – depicts the large castle on the southern outskirts of the city of Prague which overlooks the Vltava river and which has enormous historical importance to the residents of the city. The harp which opens the piece is a haunting and symbolic melody. The grand sweep of this poem reaches a bracing climax that is thrilling, representing temporary triumph, but then descends into desolation again symbolizing the fleeting glory of the Czech people.
II. Vltava (The Moldau in German) – far and away the most popular and recognizable movement from Ma Vlast, this piece has often been performed and recorded on its own apart from the other five movements. The river’s course starts slowly, is joined at another place, and then grows into a broad flowing body of water passing through fields and forests. There are sounds of hunting horns arriving at the scene of dancing and celebrating at a wedding on the banks of the river. Here you can distinctly hear the lilt in the music, and as night falls the distant imagery continues, but softer as the river flows further down toward Prague.
III. Sarka – Sarka was a warrior heroine, the subject of operas, and here it is probably Smetana’s most dramatic poem of the six. Sarka’s story is told in the music, it is full of mood contrasts of beauty, vengeance, and violence. In the story, Sarka vows vengeance on the entire male race due to infidelity. It ends in Sarka and her companions slaughtering all the men without mercy.
IV. Z Ceskych luhu a haju (“From Bohemia’s woods and fields”) – Smetana depicts Czech country life. There are momentary mood changes representing clouds and sunshine alternating, heard in minor and major harmony. According to Smetana, a country girl is walking through the fields and is struck by the beauty of nature on a summer’s day. A polka can be heard that has the country folk dancing.
V. Tabor – Tabor is a village in southern Bohemia which became a symbol for religious freedom due to it being a center for the Hussite movement in the fifteenth century. The main theme of the movement is a Hussite hymn. Tabor is strongly linked to the sixth poem by its final bars, so it is rarely heard performed on its own without Blanik following it.
VI. Blanik – Blanik’s opening is a repeat of the end of Tabor, only louder and more emphatic. The story is told of the Hussites hiding out in Blanik mountain after they were outlawed. They fall into a deep sleep until the day they can come out to save their country. A shepherd boy can be heard on his pipe near the mountainside while the warriors sleep within.
There can be no doubt that Ma Vlast is somewhat bombastic and nationalistic in its themes. I happen to like bombastic and nationalistic music, but there is much more here too. There is great beauty, pastoral feelings, folk music at its most melodic, horn and trumpet calls, lovely sustained strings, and life-affirming themes. This is grand, epic music. Smetana was a great admirer of the tone poems of Franz Liszt, and he incorporated much of the design he had learned from Liszt’s works. He also admired Berlioz and Wagner, but Smetana was always able to maintain his own unique musical voice.
The Recording
I have loved Smetana’s Ma Vlast since I bought a bargain CD decades ago with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of London conducted by Sir Malcolm Sargent. But now having heard so many different versions, and in preparation for writing this essay I listened again to dozens of recordings, it is those conducted by Czech native Rafael Kubelik that I return to the most. Kubelik was one of the most respected conductors of the twentieth century, and made his reputation by conducting and recording large orchestral works of the nineteenth century. However, today he most associated with his definitive interpretations of music by his Czech compatriots such as Smetana, Dvorak, and Janacek (though I also enjoy his recordings of Mahler).
Kubelik is associated with Smetana’s Ma Vlast more than any other work, and there are at least five commercial recordings available today on major music streaming services: his 1952 recording with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra on the Mercury label, a 1958 recording with the Vienna Philharmonic on the Decca label, this one I’m highlighting from 1971 with the Boston Symphony Orchestra on the Deutsche Grammophon label, his 1984 recording with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra on the Orfeo label, and finally his historic 1990 recording with the Czech Philharmonic on Supraphon when Kubelik returned to his homeland to conduct at the Prague Spring Festival. During the years of communism, Kubelik had chosen to be in exile from his homeland. After a long illness and having not conducting for several years, Kubelik returned to Prague to conduct Ma Vlast in a concert celebrating the liberation of the country from Communist rule.
Despite the acclaim that historic 1990 recording from Prague has deservedly garnered, it is Kubelik’s 1971 recording from Boston that enters our top 50 recordings of all time. Be sure to listen to the 2008 remastered version of this recording, because it greatly improves upon the sound of the original remaster for CD. The sound is clearer, more immediate, and eliminates some of the muddy background noise. The rest of the disc after Ma Vlast is also very well done with James Levine and the Vienna Philharmonic, but to be honest since Levine’s fall from grace due to sexual abuse allegations, for me personally it is difficult to listen objectively.
It is the performance by the Boston Symphony Orchestra that shines through, with not a hint of routine. It is full of electricity, momentum, and commitment. The BSO brass shine through brilliantly, and Kubelik imbues this most versatile of American orchestras with Czech feeling and sentiment. The warmth and radiance of Boston’s Symphony Hall is also on display, and this is certainly Kubelik’s liveliest and engaging account on record. This recording of Ma Vlast clocks in at around 76 minutes, so it is a fine accomplishment to sustain the listener’s attention all the way through as this recording does. It feels like an event, like a special occasion, and that is why I return to the recording every chance I get.
There are other very good to outstanding recordings of Ma Vlast:
The 1990 recording by the Czech Philharmonic led by Rafael Kubelik on Supraphon .
The Czech Philharmonic conducted by Sir Charles Mackerras on Supraphon (2000).
The Vienna Philharmonic conducted by Nikolaus Harnoncourt on RCA (2003).
The Czech Philharmonic led by Karel Ancerl on Supraphon (1963).
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Notes:
Brennan, Gerald. Schrott, Allen. Woodstra, Chris. All Music Guide to Classical Music, The Definitive Guide. All Media Guide. Pp. 1286 - 1287, 709. Backbeat Books, San Francisco. 2005.
Macdonald, Hugh (2007). “Ma Vlast” (“My Country”) – A cycle of six symphonic poems. Boston Symphony Orchestra Program Notes, Week 8, 2007-2008 Season. Pp. 47-53.