The Epic of Gilgamesh. Cantata on the Words of the Old-Babylonian Epic for Soloists, Speaker, Mixed Chorus and Orchestra, H. 351

The Death of Enkidu Gilgamesh (Tablets 7, 8, 10)


  • Recorded: 4th April 1976
  • Record Place: The Smetana Hall of Municipal House, Prague
  • First Release: 1976
  • (P) 1976 SUPRAPHON a.s.
  • Genre: Vocal

Artists

  • music by: Bohuslav Martinů
  • original lyrics by: Bohuslav Martinů
  • original lyrics by: Reginald Cambell Thompson
  • Czech lyrics: Ferdinand Pujman
  • soprano: Marcela Machotková
  • tenor: Jiří Zahradníček
  • baritone: Václav Zítek
  • bass: Karel Průša
  • recitation: Otakar Brousek st.
  • chorus master: Josef Veselka
  • conductor: Jiří Bělohlávek
  • musical group: Prague Philharmonic Choir
  • musical group: Prague Symphony Orchestra

Album

Prague Symphony Orchestra, Jiří Bělohlávek

Martinů: The Epic of Gilgamesh

Catalogue Number: SU 3918-2
Published: 25th May 2007
First release: SUPRAPHON, 1976
Genre: Vocal
Format: 1 CD
Jiří Bělohlávek is a world-renowned conductor of the works of Bohuslav Martinů, including the symphonic, operatic, oratorio and cantata literature. Martinů's oratorio The Epic of Gilgamesh (1955)is unusual and, in a way, unique in all the international literature, as exciting and mysterious as the ancient tale on which it is based. The epic, one of the oldest extant examples of written culture, dates back to the beginning of Babylon, and Martinů devoted a number of years to the study of its philosophical basis before beginning to set to music Thompson's translation of its Neoassyrian version. Martinů's conception and execution are truly ingenious making use of early Baroque forms. Outstanding performances by the soloists, chorus and orchestra enhance the unrepeatable atmosphere of this masterful work.
Bohuslav Martinů
The Epic of Gilgamesh. Cantata on the Words of the Old-Babylonian Epic for Soloists, Speaker, Mixed Chorus and Orchestra, H. 351
1. Gilgamesh (Tablets 1, 2) 19:10
2. The Death of Enkidu Gilgamesh (Tablets 7, 8, 10) 19:27
3. Invocation Gilgamesh (Tablet 12) 19:13