Rhapsody for large orchestra (Allegro symphonique), H. 171


  • Recorded: 7th December 1987
  • Record Place: The Dvořák Hall of Rudolfinum, Prague
  • First Release: 1989
  • (P) 1989 SUPRAPHON a.s.
  • Genre: Orchestral

Artists

  • music by: Bohuslav Martinů
  • conductor: Jiří Bělohlávek
  • musical group: Czech Philharmonic Orchestra

Album

Various Artists

Jiří Bělohlávek Recollection

Catalogue Number: SU 4250-2
Published: 18th May 2018
Genre: Orchestral
Format: 8 CD
Czech Philharmonic, Prague Symphony Orchestra, Prague Philharmonia, Brno Philharmonic Orchestra / conductor Jiří Bělohlávek

This collection from the legacy of Jiří Bělohlávek (1946-2017) was put together during the year after the demise of this outstanding conductor. It is intended mainly as a recollection of this extraordinary musician and person. His life can be briefly described by enumerating the greatest of his achievements (Chief Conductor of the Czech Philharmonic, BBC Symphony Orchestra, guest conductor with the Berliner Philharmoniker, New York Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw, appearances at the MET, Glyndebourne, etc.; holder of the Commander of the Order of the British Empire /CBE/ title). The Maestro himself may have preferred asharing of memories to recordings; yet the set of twenty-three pieces taken from the almost three hundred pieces from Supraphon archives and recorded in the years 1971 - 2016 is a wonderful illustration of Bělohlávek's professional maturing. They capture him as a conductor of several leading Czech orchestras, beginning with the Brno Philharmonic Orchestra (the energetic performance of Janáček of 1977 appearing at a CD for the first time) and concluding by the Czech Philharmonic and Prague Philharmonia. In the very centre of Bělohlávek's repertoire we find compositions by Dvořák (From the New World), Smetana (My Country), Suk, Janáček and, notably, Martinů, whom he introduced to the world. The collection is enriched by several side-steps into other areas of repertoire including Mozart, Ravel, Mahler and Bartók, which documents the amazing scope of the conductor's focus. Please accept our invitation to an encounter with Jiří Bělohlávek who loved music above anything else and served it with the loyalty of a knight till the very end.

Crucial as well as unknown recordings of Jiří Bělohlávek; a recollection of the most prominent Czech conductor of the past fifty years.

Reviews

“A most worthwhile tribute, then, to a consistently perceptive and considerate musician.”
Gramophone, September 2018

“These eight CDs offer a fair and thoughtful summation of Bělohlávek’s studio legacy and demonstrate the high level of interpretative control and consistency he displayed throughout his career.”
MusicWeb International, July 2018

“Superbement enregistré, ce coffret est un bel et incontestable hommage à ce grand chef dont la curiosité n’avait que peu d’équivalents.”
Crescendo, June 2018

“The Bottom Line: Entitled Recollection, this very well curated boxed set contains a splendid selection of the late Czech conductor Jiří Bělohlávek’s best recordings, including music by Smetana, Dvořák, Suk, Martinu, Bartók (Insider-only sound clips, below), Ravel, Mozart, Mendelssohn, Fibich, Schoenberg, Haas, Mahler and Janáček. The booklet has been very nicely prepared to give a fair appraisal of the conductor’s work, and the entire production bespeak the care and class that went into its preparation. A real collector’s item, this.”
ClassicsToday.com, February 2021

CD 1

Bedřich Smetana
My Country. Cycle of Symphonic Poems
1. Vyšehrad 15:09
2. Vltava 12:07
3. Šárka 10:10
4. From Bohemian Fields and Groves 12:34
5. Tábor 12:54
6. Blaník 14:03

CD 2

Antonín Dvořák
Symphony No. 9 in E minor "From The New World", Op. 95 (B 178)
1. Adagio. Allegro molto 09:40
2. Largo 12:11
3. Scherzo. Molto vivace 08:12
4. Allegro con fuoco 11:48
Antonín Dvořák
Serenade for String Orchestra in E major, Op. 22
5. Moderato 04:47
6. Tempo di Valse 07:11
7. Scherzo. Vivace 05:40
8. Larghetto 05:58
9. Finale. Allegro vivace 06:13

CD 3

Josef Suk
1. Fantastic Scherzo for Orchestra, Op. 25 15:43
Josef Suk
A Fairy - tale. Suita from the Music to Julius Zeyer's dramatic Tale Radúz and Mahulena, Op. 16
2. About the Faithful Love of Radúz and Mahulena and Their Sorrows - Adagio, ma non troppo 10:42
3. The Game of the Swans and the Peacocks - A la polka 03:58
4. Funeral Music - Andante sostenuto 07:16
5. Runa's Curse and How It Was Broken by Love - Allegro appassionato 08:48
Josef Suk
Serenade for String Orchestra in E flat major, Op. 6
6. Andante con moto 05:58
7. Allegro ma non troppo e grazioso 05:54
8. Adagio 09:41
9. Allegro giocoso, ma non troppo presto 07:48

CD 4

Zdeněk Fibich
Symphony No. 3 in E minor, Op. 53
1. Allegro inquieto 10:50
2. Allegro con fuoco. Adagio 07:17
3. Scherzo. Vivo e grazioso - Andante con moto 07:33
4. Allegro maestoso. Allegro vivace 11:22
Leoš Janáček
Sinfonietta
5. Allegretto 02:11
6. Andante 05:47
7. Moderato 05:05
8. Allegretto 02:47
9. Andante con moto. Allegretto 06:55
Leoš Janáček
Taras Bulba. Rhapsody for Orchestra
10. The Death of Andrei 08:19
11. The Death of Ostap 05:20
12. The Prophecy and Death of Taras Bulba 08:39

CD 5

Bohuslav Martinů
1. Overture for Orchestra, H. 345 06:35
Bohuslav Martinů
2. Rhapsody for large orchestra (Allegro symphonique), H. 171 11:52
Bohuslav Martinů
The Parables for Large Orchestra, H. 367
3. The Parable of a Sculpture. Andante pastorale 06:04
4. The Parable of a Garden. Poco moderato - Allegro molto 06:55
5. The Parable of a Navire. Poco Allegro 08:24
Bohuslav Martinů
Estampes, H. 369
6. Andante 05:39
7. Adagio. Allegro moderato - Tempo 06:57
8. Poco Allegro 05:35
Maurice Ravel
Ma mere l'Oye. Cinq Pieces enfantines (Ma mere l'Oye. Cinq Pieces enfantines)
9. Pavane de la Belle au bois dormant 01:59
10. Petit Poucet 04:02
11. Laideronette, impératrice des Pagodes 03:40
12. Les entretiens de la Belle et de la Bete 04:30
13. Le Jardin féerique 03:55
Maurice Ravel
14. Pavane for the Late Infanta (Pavane pour une infante défunte) 06:55

CD 6

Bohuslav Martinů
Tre ricercari, H. 267
1. Allegro poco 04:28
2. Largo 06:15
3. Allegro 04:30
Béla Bartók
Divertimento for Strings Orchestra
4. Allegro non troppo 08:51
5. Molto adagio 10:11
6. Allegro assai 07:29
Béla Bartók
Concerto for Orchestra, Sz 116
7. Introduzione. Andante non troppo 10:14
8. Giuoco delle copie. Allegretto scherzando 07:11
9. Elegia. Andante, non troppo 07:14
10. Intermezzo interrotto. Allegretto 04:14
11. Finale. Pesante. Presto 10:29

CD 7

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Symphony No. 38 in D major Prague, K. 504
1. Adagio. Allegro 12:40
2. Andante 12:31
3. Finale. Presto 07:33
Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy
Symphony No. 4 in A major Italian, Op. 90
4. Allegro vivace 10:52
5. Andante con moto 06:05
6. Con moto moderato 06:38
7. Saltarello (Presto) 05:19

CD 8

Arnold Schönberg
1. Verklärte Nacht, Op. 4 28:21
Pavel Haas
2. Study for String Orchestra (Terezín 1943) 08:18
Gustav Mahler
Symphony No. 5 in C sharp minor
3. Adagietto. Sehr langsam 09:48
Gustav Mahler
Symphony No. 2 in C minor Resurrection
4. Urlicht. Sehr feierlich, aber schlicht 05:18