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Káťa Kabanová
''Káťa Kabanová'' (also known in various spellings including ''Katia'', ''Katja'', ''Katya'', and ''Kabanowa'') is an opera in three acts, with music by Leoš Janáček to a libretto by the composer based on '' The Storm'', a play by Alexander Ostrovsky, translated by . The opera was also largely inspired by Janáček's love for Kamila Stösslová. Although he was 67 when it was premiered, ''Káťa Kabanová'' is a clear response to Janáček's feelings for Kamila, and the work is dedicated to her. The first performance was at the National Theatre Brno on 23 November 1921. The opera has had a complex publication history. František Neumann, the conductor of the opera's first performance, made changes that were incorporated into the first publication of the score in 1922 by Universal Edition. Conductor Václav Talich later produced a "re-orchestrated" version of the score. In 1992, Sir Charles Mackerras published a critical edition of the opera.Wingfield, Paul, "Reviews of Music" ...
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Leoš Janáček
Leoš Janáček (, baptised Leo Eugen Janáček; 3 July 1854 – 12 August 1928) was a Czech composer, musical theorist, folklorist, publicist, and teacher. He was inspired by Moravian and other Slavic musics, including Eastern European folk music, to create an original, modern musical style.Sehnal and Vysloužil (2001), p. 175 Until 1895 he devoted himself mainly to folkloristic research. While his early musical output was influenced by contemporaries such as Antonín Dvořák, his later, mature works incorporate his earlier studies of national folk music in a modern, highly original synthesis, first evident in the opera ''Jenůfa'', which was premiered in 1904 in Brno. The success of ''Jenůfa'' (often called the "Moravian national opera") at Prague in 1916 gave Janáček access to the world's great opera stages. Janáček's later works are his most celebrated. They include operas such as ''Káťa Kabanová'' and ''The Cunning Little Vixen'', the Sinfonietta, the ''Glag ...
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Soprano
A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261  Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880 Hz in choral music, or to "soprano C" (C6, two octaves above middle C) = 1046 Hz or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which often encompasses the melody. The soprano voice type is generally divided into the coloratura, soubrette, lyric, spinto, and dramatic soprano. Etymology The word "soprano" comes from the Italian word '' sopra'' (above, over, on top of),"Soprano"
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Zdeněk Kroupa
Zdeněk Kroupa (15 November 1921 in Adamov – 7 January 1999 in Brno) was a Czech opera singer. His wife became lifelong soloist of the National Theatre in Mira Figarova. Life Kroupa inherited his talent from his mother, who worked in amateur theater. Kroupa worked in construction before he began taking private lessons in singing and joining the Czech State Theatre in Brno. He had his first solo in August 1946. In 1970, he joined the Provincial Theatre in Linz, working there until his retirement in 1991. He received two significant awards during his tenure with the Provincial Theatre. In 1973, he received an award for artistic achievement for his performance in ''Příhody lišky Bystroušky'' (''Cunning Little Vixen''), an opera by Leoš Janáček Leoš Janáček (, baptised Leo Eugen Janáček; 3 July 1854 – 12 August 1928) was a Czech composer, musical theorist, folklorist, publicist, and teacher. He was inspired by Moravian and other Slavic musics, including ...
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Beno Blachut
Beno Blachut (14 June 1913 – 10 January 1985) was a lauded Czech operatic tenor. An icon in his own nation, Blachut drew international acclaim through his many commercial recordings of Czech music. He was an instrumental part of the post-World War II school of Czech opera singers that were responsible for popularizing Czech opera internationally. He was highly regarded for his interpretations of roles in operas by Leoš Janáček, Antonín Dvořák, and Bedřich Smetana. Biography Born in Ostrava-Vítkovice, Blachut grew up in a poor family of miners. Blachut was highly involved in his church's music program which provided him with his initial musical training as a child and teenager. In 1927, at the age of 14, he began working at an iron factory and from all appearances it seemed he was destined to live a life similar to that of his parents. In the year 1935 he started to study singing at the Prague conservatory. At the conservatory, Blachut studied under Luis Kadeřábek ...
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Supraphon
Supraphon Music Publishing is a Czech record label, oriented mainly towards publishing classical music and popular music, with an emphasis on Czech and Slovak composers. History The Supraphon name was first registered as a trademark in 1932. The name was used for the label of domestic albums produced for export by Ultraphon company. Post World War II Ultraphon was nationalized and changed its name to Gramofonové závody. In 1961 the name was changed to Gramofonové závody – Supraphon and later just to Supraphon in 1969. In Czechoslovakia, it was one of the three major state-owned labels, the other two being Panton and Opus. Panton is currently a division of Supraphon; Opus (operating in Slovakia) became independent after break-up of Czechoslovakia and was acquired by Warner Music Group in 2019. Catalogues The artistic direction of the firm gave rise to a broad catalogue of titles which systematically mapped out the works of Bedřich Smetana, Antonín Dvořák, Leoš J ...
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Vienna State Opera
The Vienna State Opera (, ) is an opera house and opera company based in Vienna, Austria. The 1,709-seat Renaissance Revival venue was the first major building on the Vienna Ring Road. It was built from 1861 to 1869 following plans by August Sicard von Sicardsburg and Eduard van der Nüll, and designs by Josef Hlávka. The opera house was inaugurated as the "Vienna Court Opera" (''Wiener Hofoper'') in the presence of Emperor Franz Joseph I and Empress Elisabeth of Austria. It became known by its current name after the establishment of the First Austrian Republic in 1921. The Vienna State Opera is the successor of the old Vienna Court Opera (built in 1636 inside the Hofburg). The new site was chosen and the construction paid by Emperor Franz Joseph in 1861. The members of the Vienna Philharmonic are recruited from the Vienna State Opera's orchestra. The building is also the home of the Vienna State Ballet, and it hosts the annual Vienna Opera Ball during the carnival season. ...
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Vienna Philharmonic
The Vienna Philharmonic (VPO; german: Wiener Philharmoniker, links=no) is an orchestra that was founded in 1842 and is considered to be one of the finest in the world. The Vienna Philharmonic is based at the Musikverein in Vienna, Austria. Its members are selected from the orchestra of the Vienna State Opera. Selection involves a lengthy process, with each musician demonstrating their capability for a minimum of three years' performance for the opera and ballet. After this probationary period, the musician may request an application for a position in the orchestra from the Vienna Philharmonic's board. History Precursors and formation Until the 1830s, orchestral performance in Vienna was done by ''ad hoc'' orchestras, consisting of professional and (often) amateur musicians brought together for specific performances. In 1833, Franz Lachner formed the forerunner of the Vienna Philharmonic, the – an orchestra of professional musicians from the Vienna Court Opera (''Wiener Hof ...
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Jaroslav Souček
Jaroslav Souček (8 December 1935 – 2 January 2006) was a Czech operatic baritone who had an active career in his native country from 1960 through 1997. He sang a broad repertoire that encompassed roles from Czech, English, French, German, Italian, and Russian operas from a variety of musical periods. He was also active as a concert singer and performed numerous times with the Czech Philharmonic. His voice is preserved on a number of Czech radio broadcasts and CD and DVD recordings made on the Supraphon label. Biography Born in Velim, Souček studied singing with Konstantin Karenin at the Prague Conservatory. He made his professional opera debut in 1960 at the Jihočeské divadlo in České Budějovice where he remained for the first two years of his career, sometimes sharing the stage with his sister, soprano Stanislava Součková. He made a guest appearance at the Komische Oper Berlin in the Fall of 1962 before becoming a member of the Brno National Theatre where he was commi ...
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Libuše Márová
Libuše Márová (born 24 December 1943) is a Czech operatic mezzo-soprano who has been a principal artist at the National Theatre in Prague since 1969. She has sung on a number of recordings in the Supraphon label and currently teaches on the voice faculty at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. Biography Born in Sušice, Márová studied at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague with Přemysl Kočí, Josef Frýdl, Štěpánka Štěpánová, and Michael Zabejda. She made her professional opera debut in 1965 at the Divadlo Josefa Kajetána Tyla in Plzeň as Azucena in Giuseppe Verdi's ''Il Trovatore''. In 1969 Márová was appointed to the Prague National Theatre where she quickly became one of the theatre's most important artists. On stage she excelled in the dramatic Czech repertoire, portraying such roles as Donna Isabella in ''The Bride of Messina'', Fanny in '' The Excursions of Mr. Brouček to the Moon and to the 15th Century'', Martinka in '' The Kiss'', V ...
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Naděžda Kniplová
Naděžda Kniplová (née Pokorná; 18 April 1932 – 14 January 2020) was a Czech operatic soprano who had an active international career from the 1950s through the 1980s. Kniplová possessed a large voice with a sonorous, metallic, dark timbre that was particularly well suited to the dramatic soprano repertoire. While she was most admired in Czech operas and as Wagnerian heroines, she sang a wide repertoire that also encompassed Italian, Russian, and Hungarian language roles. A fine actress, her performances were praised for their intensity and pathos. However, some critics commented on a certain lack of steadiness or purity in her singing. Her voice is preserved on a number of recordings made on the Supraphon and Decca labels. Biography Born in Ostrava to a musical family, Kniplová had her first vocal training from her father before studying under Jarmila Vavrdová at the Prague Conservatory from 1947 to 1953. She pursued further studies at the Academy of Performing Arts in ...
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Elisabeth Söderström
Anna Elisabeth Söderström (married name Olow; 7 May 192720 November 2009) was a Swedish soprano who performed both opera and song, and was known as a leading interpreter of the works of Janáček, Rachmaninoff and Sibelius.Elizabeth Sleeman, ''International Who's Who 2004,'' Routledge, 2003. p. 1579. She was particularly well known for her recordings of the lead soprano roles in the three Janáček operas ''Jenůfa'', ''Káťa Kabanová'', and '' The Makropoulos Affair'', all of which received Gramophone Awards. The ''Gramophone'' critic John Warrack described her portrayal of Káťa Kabanová as "establishing by an infinity of subtle touches and discreet, sensitive singing the picture of Káta as the richest and most human character in the drama". Career Born in Stockholm, Söderström received her first musical schooling from Adelaide von Skilondz and later studied at the Royal College of Music, Stockholm. She made her debut in 1947 at the Drottningholm Palace Theatre sin ...
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Embroidery
Embroidery is the craft of decorating fabric or other materials using a needle to apply thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as pearls, beads, quills, and sequins. In modern days, embroidery is usually seen on caps, hats, coats, overlays, blankets, dress shirts, denim, dresses, stockings, scarfs, and golf shirts. Embroidery is available in a wide variety of thread or yarn colour. Some of the basic techniques or stitches of the earliest embroidery are chain stitch, buttonhole or blanket stitch, running stitch, satin stitch, and cross stitch. Those stitches remain the fundamental techniques of hand embroidery today. History Origins The process used to tailor, patch, mend and reinforce cloth fostered the development of sewing techniques, and the decorative possibilities of sewing led to the art of embroidery. Indeed, the remarkable stability of basic embroidery stitches has been noted: The art of embroidery has been found worldwide and ...
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