Antonín Dvořák
Antonín Leopold Dvořák ( ; ; 8 September 1841 – 1 May 1904) was a Czechs, Czech composer. Dvořák frequently employed rhythms and other aspects of the folk music of Moravian traditional music, Moravia and his native Bohemia, following t ...
composed his
oratorio
An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is mus ...
''Saint Ludmila'' (
Czech
Czech may refer to:
* Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe
** Czech language
** Czechs, the people of the area
** Czech culture
** Czech cuisine
* One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus'
Places
* Czech, ...
: ''Svatá Ludmila'' () for
soloists,
choir
A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...
and
orchestra
An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families.
There are typically four main sections of instruments:
* bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...
, between September 1885 and May 1886. The oratorio (Op. 71,
B. 144) was written to a text by the leading
Czech
Czech may refer to:
* Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe
** Czech language
** Czechs, the people of the area
** Czech culture
** Czech cuisine
* One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus'
Places
* Czech, ...
poet and writer
Jaroslav Vrchlický
Jaroslav Vrchlický (; 17 February 1853 – 9 September 1912) was a Czech lyrical poet. He was nominated for the Nobel prize in literature eight times.
Life
He was born Emilius Jakob Frida in Louny.
He lived ten years with his uncle, a p ...
. ''Saint Ludmila'' is Dvořák's third oratorio, and is considered one of his foremost works.
Background
The work was commissioned by the publisher Littleton during Dvořák's first visit to
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
.
[ (H 4027) ISMN M-2601-0128-9] It was intended for the
Leeds Festival
The Reading and Leeds Festivals are a pair of annual music festivals that take place in Reading and Leeds in England. The events take place simultaneously on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend. The Reading Festiv ...
, and Dvořák, well acquainted with the English festival tradition,
was attracted by the idea. He was also impressed by the high standard of English orchestras and choirs, and particularly by their performances of oratorios.
On the other hand, he was also inspired by his own religiousness; he composed many works to
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
religious texts, as well as ''Hussite Overture'', a "
protestant
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
" instrumental work.
Chronologically ''Saint Ludmila'' follows
Symphony No. 7 in D Minor (finished in March, 1885), and both works are influenced by the actual historical events of that time.
The year 1884 was restless for the Czechs; they organized demonstrations and patriotic manifestations of solidarity in the fight for freedom, the Austrian police had forbidden the singing of Czech songs, and the social situation was very tense. Dvořák turned to typical Czech and Slavonic themes during this time in order to support the national movement, although he was approached by his German publisher
Simrock Simrock may refer to the German sheet music publisher N. Simrock, or one of the following members of the Simrock family engaged in that business:
* Nikolaus Simrock, (1751–1832), founder of N. Simrock
* Karl Joseph Simrock (1802–1876), son of N ...
to depart from patriotic themes and instead create works based on world famous literary works.
Dvořák, however, refused in one of his letters to Simrock saying, ''"... an artist also has a country for which he must have firm faith and a fervent heart."''
[ The work is thus of a national rather than religious character, which is apparent mainly in the choral scenes.
The first performance was not well received; the work was criticised for its length, its Czech theme and also for its alleged musical dependence on ]George Frideric Handel
George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque music, Baroque composer well known for his opera#Baroque era, operas, oratorios, anthems, concerto grosso, concerti grossi, ...
, Felix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sy ...
, Richard Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...
, Joseph Haydn
Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...
and Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...
. Dvořák later rewrote and reduced several parts of the composition. ''Saint Ludmila'' was premiered in Prague
Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...
in 1901, and the first performance with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra
The Česká filharmonie (Czech Philharmonic) is a symphony orchestra based in Prague. The orchestra's principal concert venue is the Rudolfinum.
History
The name "Czech Philharmonic Orchestra" appeared for the first time in 1894, as the title ...
took place on 3 April 1904. However, Dvořák was seriously ill and didn't attend this performance.
Saint Ludmila has a long performance tradition on Czech concert stages. It was given at the third Prague Spring International Music Festival
The Prague Spring International Music Festival ( cs, Mezinárodní hudební festival Pražské jaro, commonly cs, Pražské jaro, Prague Spring) is a classical music festival held every year in Prague, Czech Republic, with symphony orchestras an ...
in 1948, conducted by Rafael Kubelík
Rafael Jeroným Kubelík, KBE (29 June 1914 – 11 August 1996) was a Czech conductor and composer.
Son of a well-known violinist, Jan Kubelík, he was trained in Prague, and made his debut with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of ...
. It was Kubelík's last public performance in his native country for many years. In November 1954 the Czech Philharmonic with Karel Šejna Karel Šejna (1 November 1896, Zálezly – 17 December 1982, Prague) was a Czech double bassist and conductor, the principal conductor of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra in 1950.
Life and career
Šejna's musical studies were at the Prague C ...
performed the work at two concerts in the Smetana Hall of the Municipal House
Municipal House ( cs, Obecní dům) is a civic building that houses Smetana Hall, a celebrated concert venue, in Prague. It is located on Náměstí Republiky next to the Powder Gate in the centre of the city.
History
The Royal Court palace us ...
in Prague. In 1987 another concert took place, this time with the conductor Václav Neumann
Václav Neumann (29 October 1920 – 2 September 1995) was a Czech conductor, violinist, violist, and opera director.
Life and career
Neumann was born in Prague, where he studied at the Prague Conservatory with Josef Micka (violin), and ...
. The first performance in the 21st century was given in 2004, one hundred years after Dvořák's death, with the Czech Philharmonic and conductor Jiří Bělohlávek
Jiří Bělohlávek, (; 24 February 1946 – 31 May 2017) was a Czech conductor. He was a leading interpreter of Czech classical music, and became chief conductor of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra in 1990, a role he would serve on two occasio ...
.
Structure
The verses of the libretto are based on historical fact. Prince Rastislav of Moravia
Rastislav or Rostislav, also known as St. Rastislav, (Latin: ''Rastiz'', Greek: Ῥασισθλάβος / ''Rhasisthlábos'') was the second known ruler of Moravia (846–870).Spiesz ''et al.'' 2006, p. 20. Although he started his reign as vass ...
asked the brothers Cyril and Methodius
Cyril (born Constantine, 826–869) and Methodius (815–885) were two brothers and Byzantine Christian theologians and missionaries. For their work evangelizing the Slavs, they are known as the "Apostles to the Slavs".
They are credited wit ...
of Thessalonica
Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...
to spread Christianity in his country. In 863 they came bringing the Glagolitic alphabet
The Glagolitic script (, , ''glagolitsa'') is the oldest known Slavic alphabet. It is generally agreed to have been created in the 9th century by Saint Cyril, a monk from Thessalonica. He and his brother Saint Methodius were sent by the Byzan ...
which laid the foundation of Slavonic literature. During this time, Great Moravia came under the influence of the Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
. Later, this cultural and political influence spread also to Bohemia
Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...
and in 874, Bořivoj I, Duke of Bohemia
Bořivoj I (, la, Borzivogius, c. 852 – c. 889) was the first historically documented Duke of Bohemia and progenitor of the Přemyslid dynasty. His reign over the Duchy of Bohemia is believed to have started about the year 870, but in this er ...
and his wife Saint Ludmila
Ludmila of Bohemia (c. 860 – 15 September 921) is a Czech saint and martyr venerated by the Orthodox and the Roman Catholics. She was born in Mělník as the daughter of the Sorbian prince Slavibor. Saint Ludmila was the grandmother ...
were baptised.[
The story is set at the beginning of this era. The hermit Ivan accepts the task of missionary, his eloquence winning over Ludmila, the Bohemian princess. She meets Prince Bořivoj and they are then married. Bořivoj is baptised under the influence of the new teaching and becomes Christian.
The libretto consists of three parts. The situation in the first part is tense as Ivan comes into conflict with the pagans. Ludmila intervenes. In the second part Dvořák applied his talent for melody and ability to express feelings of love. The finale is festive and pompous with a statement of the ancient Czech chorale "''Hospodine, pomiluj ny''" ("Mighty Lord, have mercy upon us") which dates from about the eleventh century.] The composition has been appreciated for its melodiousness and colourful instrumentation.
Part I
Part II
Part III
Roles
Recordings
* Dvořák: Svatá Ludmila – Lívia Ághová. WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln
The WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne (German: WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln) is a German radio orchestra based in Cologne, where the orchestra mainly performs at two concert halls: the WDR Funkhaus Wallrafplatz and the Kölner Philharmonie.
Histo ...
, Gerd Albrecht
Gerd Albrecht (19 July 1935 – 2 February 2014) was a German conductor.
Biography
Albrecht was born in Essen, the son of the musicologist Hans Albrecht (1902–1961). He studied music in Kiel and in Hamburg, where his teachers included Wilhel ...
(2000)
* Dvořák: Svatá Ludmila – Eva Zikmundová, 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 ...
. Prague Symphony Orchestra The Prague Symphony Orchestra (Prague, Czech Republic, cs, Symfonický orchestr hlavního města Prahy ''FOK'') is a Czech orchestra based in Prague. The orchestra has traditionally been known by the acronym 'FOK', standing for 'Film-Opera-Koncert' ...
, Václav Smetáček (1963)
References
External links
Original Urbanek Libretto, Prague, 1887
Info on a comprehensive Dvorak site
Saint Ludmila - performance review (Guardian.co.uk)
Saint Lumila at České sbory.cz
Review at muzikus.cz
{{Authority control
Compositions by Antonín Dvořák
Oratorios
1886 compositions
Czech-language choral compositions