Vítězslav Novák
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Vítězslav Augustín Rudolf Novák (5 December 1870 – 18 July 1949) was a Czech
composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...
and academic teacher at the Prague Conservatory. Stylistically, he was part of the neo-romantic tradition, and his music is considered an important example of Czech modernism. He worked towards a strong Czech identity in culture after the country became independent in 1918. His compositions include operas and orchestral works.


Biography


Early years

Novák (baptized Viktor Novák) was born in
Kamenice nad Lipou Kamenice nad Lipou () (german: Kamnitz an der Linde) is a town in Pelhřimov District in the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 3,600 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban m ...
, a small town in Southern
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 ...
. In 1872 the family moved to Počátky, where Novák first studied the violin with Antonín Šilhan and the piano with Marie Krejčová. After the death of his father in 1882, the family moved to Jindřichův Hradec, where Novák continued his studies at grammar school . An elementary school in the town is named after Novák today. In his late teens, he moved to Prague to study at the Prague Conservatory, changing his name to Vítězslav to identify more closely with his Czech identity, as many of those of his generation had already done. At the conservatory, he studied piano and attended
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 ...
's masterclasses in composition where his fellow students included
Josef Suk Josef Suk may refer to: * Josef Suk (composer) (1874–1935), Czech composer and violinist * Josef Suk (violinist) (1929–2011), his grandson, Czech violinist and conductor {{Hndis, Suk, Josef ...
, Oskar Nedbal, and
Rudolf Karel Rudolf Karel (9 November 1880 in Plzeň – 6 March 1945 in Theresienstadt) was a distinguished Czech people, Czech composer. Biography Rudolf Karel was a son of a railway employee. He studied law at Charles University and then composition from ...
. When Dvořák departed for his three-year stay in America (1892–1895), Novák continued his studies with the ultra-conservative Karel Stecker. However, just before and after 1900, shortly after his graduation, Novák wrote a series of compositions that put distance between himself and the teachings of both Stecker and Dvořák, edging his style toward the fledgling modernist movement. Beginning in the late 1890s, Novák began to explore influences beyond the prevailing Wagner/ Brahms aesthetic of his contemporaries in Prague. Among these were folk influences from Moravia and Slovakia, which at that time were considered culturally backward in the cosmopolitan Czech capital. He also developed an interest in what would come to be called musical Impressionism, although in later life he denied any exposure to the music of Debussy at this time, claiming instead to have arrived at similar techniques on his own. These included forays into bitonality and non-functional, parallel
harmony In music, harmony is the process by which individual sounds are joined together or composed into whole units or compositions. Often, the term harmony refers to simultaneously occurring frequencies, pitches ( tones, notes), or chords. However ...
. Finally, after the Prague premiere of ''Salome'' in 1906, Novák formed an attachment to the music of
Richard Strauss Richard Georg Strauss (; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer, conductor, pianist, and violinist. Considered a leading composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras, he has been described as a successor of Richard Wag ...
that would remain for the rest of his career.


Musicology and feud

Shortly after the turn of the century, Novák began teaching composition privately in Prague. From 1909 to 1920, he taught at the Prague Conservatory himself, and this occasionally occupied him to a greater degree than composing.
Stefania Turkewich Stefania Turkewich-Lukianovych (25 April 1898 – 8 April 1977) was a Ukrainian composer, pianist, and musicologist, recognized as Ukraine's first woman composer. Her works were banned in Ukraine by Soviet authorities. Biography Childhood S ...
was one of his students. During the same period, several events affected Novák's outlook on musical expression and artistic freedom. From 1901 to 1917, his apartment hosted a discussion group known as the ''Podskalská filharmonie''. While most of its members were musicians, including Suk, Karel, and the conductor
Václav Talich Václav Talich (; 28 May 1883, Kroměříž – 16 March 1961, Beroun) was a Czech violinist and later a musical pedagogue. He is remembered today as one of the greatest conductors of the 20th century, the object of countless reissues of his man ...
, performances were confined to readings of new modernist works from abroad and the group's goals were primarily intellectual; the ''Filharmonie'' served, however, as an important place for this group of Czech modernists to share their ideas. By regulation, its only female member was Marie Prášková, whom Novák married in 1912. That same year, Novák became embroiled in a series of culturo-political battles in Prague between his Conservatory-based faction and that of
Zdeněk Nejedlý Zdeněk Nejedlý (10 February 1878 – 9 March 1962) was a Czech musicologist, historian, music critic, author, and politician whose ideas dominated the cultural life of what is now the Czech Republic for most of the twentieth century. Although ...
, a critic and musicologist at
Prague University ) , image_name = Carolinum_Logo.svg , image_size = 200px , established = , type = Public, Ancient , budget = 8.9 billion CZK , rector = Milena Králíčková , faculty = 4,057 , administrative_staff = 4,026 , students = 51,438 , underg ...
. When Novák signed a protest against Nejedlý's anti-Dvořák propaganda, Nejedlý engaged in fierce criticism of Novák's music. The impact of this criticism on Novák was long-lasting and ushered in a crisis in his creative life.


Political affairs

Upon the independence of Czechoslovakia in 1918, Novák turned his focus toward the administration of culture in the new democratic regime. In this capacity, he led the push toward de-Germanification and nationalization of the Conservatory, during which process his German-Bohemian colleagues, including Alexander Zemlinsky and Paul Nettl, were forced out to form a segregated institution. Novák became the new administrative head of the Czech-only institution and held various titles, alternating with Suk and others, until his retirement. During this period he continued to teach composition in the form of masterclasses, thereby influencing a new
interwar In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the First World War to the beginning of the Second World War. The interwar period was relativel ...
generation of musicians, despite the increasing conservatism of his compositions in the 1920s.


Renewal and death

180px, Vítězslav Novák In the 1930s, Novák went through a period of artistic renewal with the premieres of some large-scale compositions. After the collapse of democracy and the subsequent Nazi protectorate in 1939, Novák, then retired, gained credibility among his younger Czech contemporaries through the performance of several patriotic and morale-boosting works, meant as a musical form of resistance. After the Second World War, he wrote a lengthy memoir, entitled ''O sobě a jiných'' (Of Myself and Others, publ. 1970), in which he aired many of his long-standing grudges, especially toward his main rival,
Otakar Ostrčil Otakar Ostrčil (25 February 1879 in Prague – 20 August 1935 in Prague) was a Czech composer and conductor. He is noted for symphonic works ''Impromptu'', ''Suite in C Minor'', and ''Symfonietta'', and in his opera compositions '' Poupě'' and ...
, but also even his close friend Josef Suk. He died in
Skuteč Skuteč (; german: Skutsch) is a town in Chrudim District in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 5,000 inhabitants. Administrative parts Villages of Borek, Hněvětice, Lažany, Lešany, Lhota u Skutče, Nová Ves, Radčice, ...
in Eastern Bohemia, where he had spent much of his last years.


Compositional career

Novák's music retained at least some elements of the late-
Romantic Romantic may refer to: Genres and eras * The Romantic era, an artistic, literary, musical and intellectual movement of the 18th and 19th centuries ** Romantic music, of that era ** Romantic poetry, of that era ** Romanticism in science, of that e ...
style until his death. His earliest work to receive an opus number was a piano trio in G minor, but it was preceded, in order of composition, by several works including an unpublished serenade in B minor for piano dating from 1886–7; all of these bear the influences of Schumann and Grieg. In his earliest years after graduating from Prague Conservatory, his work began to show some influence from Moravian and
Slovak folk music Slovakia has an enormous reservoir of folk music. The people of Slovakia tend to designate themselves as the "singing nation". Many musicological studies evidence that Slovak folk music is indigenous and has ancient origins, even in respect to ne ...
, which he began to collect and study in the late 1890s. Within the decade he had assimilated the basic intervallic and rhythmic characteristics of these folksongs into a very personal compositional style. The first works to reveal this change are the Second String Quartet, op. 35 (1905), and the path-breaking solo piano work, ''Sonata Eroica'', op. 24 (1900). The next influence was that of French impressionism, which first appears in the song cycle ''Melancholie'', op. 25, composed in 1901, and is most apparent in the tone poem ''O věčné touze'' (Of the Eternal Longing, op. 33, completed 1905). Meanwhile, the more monumental aspects of his style, evident in the Slovak-inspired tone poem ''V Tatrách'' (In the Tatras, op. 26, 1902) and the song cycle ''Údolí nového království'' (Valley of the New Kingdom, op. 31, 1903) combined with his discovery of the music of Strauss: the result was the tone poem, ''Toman a lesní Panna'' (Toman and the Wood Nymph, op. 40, completed 1907). The height of his compositional career was considered, including in the criticism of the day, to consist of two principal achievements, both completed in 1910: ''Pan'', the five-movement tone poem for piano solo (totalling some sixty pages of music, op. 43), and ''Bouře'' (The Tempest, op. 42, to a text by
Svatopluk Čech Svatopluk Čech (21 February 1846 in Ostředek near Benešov – 23 February 1908 in Prague) was a Czech writer, journalist and poet. Biography Čech studied at gymnasium (secondary school) in Prague, then studied law, and later worked in the jo ...
). The latter was a grandiose symphonic
cantata A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir. The meaning of ...
for soloists, chorus, and orchestra, running to just under an hour of unbroken music; its attention to musico-dramatic detail was evidence of Novák's increasing interest in opera, a style in which he had not written at that point. His conflict with Nejedlý brought about a sharp change in Novák's attitude to composition, wherein fear of rejection became more important than artistic exploration. The negative response from the public to the orchestrated version of ''Pan'' (1912) and the next cantata, ''Svatební košile'' ("The Wedding Shirt", 1913), based on the same Erben text as Dvořák's more famous work) caused severe self-doubt and depression. Novák attempted to turn the situation around with two operas about Czech historical subjects, a transparently nationalist move during wartime. ''Zvíkovský rarášek'' (The Zvíkov Imp, 1915, a comedy based on Stroupežnický) and ''
Karlštejn Karlštejn Castle ( cs, hrad Karlštejn; german: Burg Karlstein) is a large Gothic castle founded in 1348 by Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor-elect and King of Bohemia. The castle served as a place for safekeeping the Imperial Regalia as well as ...
'' (Karlštejn castle, 1916, a more serious work based on Vrchlický) both met with mixed reviews, although the latter became a fixture in the repertoire of Czech opera houses through the mid-century. These works exemplified Novák's tendency toward bitonality, latent in the early folksong work. Czechoslovak independence in 1918 sparked several patriotic compositions, dedicated to the "President-Liberator" Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk and the Czechoslovak Legion. These democratic impulses led to a stylistic conservatism, such that the artistic experimentation of 1900–1916 all but disappeared. The two remaining operas, ''Lucerna'' (The Lantern, 1923, based on Jirásek), and ''Dědův odkaz'' (The grandfather's legacy, 1926, based on Heyduk) met with predominantly negative criticism, and Novák developed extreme bitterness toward the cultural forces that opposed him, leading him toward reactionism. With two ballet-pantomimes completed in 1928–29, ''Signorina Gioventù'' and ''Nikotina'', Novák regained some of the respect he had lost among his colleagues; the layering of orchestral effects (including mixed meters and even references to tango) won him the approval of some younger composers, such as
Iša Krejčí Iša František Krejčí (10 July 1904 – 6 March 1968) was a Czech neoclassicist composer, conductor and dramaturge. Life Krejčí was born in Prague. He studied history and musicology at Charles University and concurrently piano playing wi ...
and Alois Hába. In the 1930s he returned to chamber music, but also large forms such as the epic choral/orchestral work, ''Podzimní symfonie'' (Autumn Symphony, op. 62, premiered 1934). During the Nazi occupation, Novák rose again in the estimation of his compatriots as a result of his patriotic works: the symphonic poems with organ, ''De Profundis'' (op. 67, 1941) and ''Svatováclavský triptych'' ( Saint Wenceslas Triptych, op. 70, 1942) and the ''Májová symfonie'' (May Symphony, op. 73, dedicated to Stalin as liberator of the Czechs and premiered after the war in 1945) demonstrate these sentiments. In his remaining years he was primarily engaged with choral works based on South-Bohemian folksong.


Works


Dramatic works

* ''Zvíkovský rarášek'', Op. 49, comic opera, 1913-14 * ''Karlštejn'', Op. 50, opera, 1914-15 * ''Lucerna'', Op. 56, musical fairytale, 1919-22 * ''Dedův odkaz'' (Grandfather's legacy), Op. 57, opera, 1922-25 * ''Signorina Gioventu'', Op. 68, ballet pantomime, 1926-28 * ''Nikotina'', Op. 59, ballet pantomime, 1929 * ''Žižka'', Op.78, incidental music, 1948


Symphonies

* ''Podzimní symfonie'', Op. 62 (Autumn Symphony), for choirs and large orchestra, 1931-1934; *# ''Allegro appasionato'' *# ''Bacchanale'' *# 'Adagio'' * ''Májová symfonie'', Op. 73 (May Symphony), for soloists, choir, and orchestra, 1943; *# ''Andante sostenuto'' *# ''Andante'' *# ''Alla marcia funebre''


Orchestral works

* ''Korzár'' (''The Corsair''), overture after Byron, 1892 * Serenade, Op. 9, for small orchestra, 1894-1895, revised 1949 * Piano Concerto in E minor, 1895 *# ''Allegro energico'' *# ''Andante con sentimento'' *# ''Allegro giusto'' * ''Maryša'', Op. 18, dramatic overture, 1898 * ''V Tatrách'' (In the Tatra mountains), Op. 26,
symphonic poem A symphonic poem or tone poem is a piece of orchestral music, usually in a single continuous movement, which illustrates or evokes the content of a poem, short story, novel, painting, landscape, or other (non-musical) source. The German term ''T ...
, 1902 * ''Slovácká svita'', Op. 32 (''Slovak Suite''), for small orchestra,1903 * ''O večné touze'', Op. 33 (''Eternal Longing''), after
Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen ( , ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. Andersen's fairy tales, consisti ...
, 1903-05 * ''2 Valašské tance'', Op. 34, 1904 * Serenade, Op. 36, for small orchestra, 1905 * ''Toman a lesní panna'', Op. 40 (''Toman and the Wood Nymph''), symphonic poem, 1906-07 * ''Lady Godiva'', Op. 41, overture after the tragedy by Vrchlicky, 1907 * ''Pan'', Op. 43, symphonic poem, 1910 * ''Jihočeská svita'' (''South Bohemian Suite''), Op. 64, 1936-37 * De Profundis, Op. 67, symphonic poem‚ 1941 * ''Svatováclavský triptych'', Op. 70 (St. Wenceslas triptych), for organ and orchestra, 1941


Voice and orchestra

* ''Melancholické písně o lásce'' (Melancholic songs about love), Op. 38, for soprano and orchestra, 1906 * ''Bouře'', Op. 42 (de storm), voor solisten, koor en orkest, 1908-10 * ''Svatební košile'', Op. 48, after Erben, for soloists, choir and orchestra, 1912-13 * ''3 české zpěvy'', Op. 53 (3 Czech songs), for male choir and orchestra, 1918 * ''2 romances'', Op. 63 (on a text by Jan Neruda), 1934 * ''In memoriam'', Op. 65, 4 songs for mezzo-soprano, string orchestra, harp, and tamtam, 1936-37 * ''2 legendy na slova lidové‚ poesie moravské'' (2 legends on Moravian folk poetry), Op. 76, for mezzo-soprano and orchestra, 1944 * ''Hvězdy'', for female choir and orchestra, 1949


References

*


External links

* *
Vitezslav Novak Society site
(in Czech)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Novak, Vitezslav 1870 births 1949 deaths People from Kamenice nad Lipou People from the Kingdom of Bohemia Czech male classical composers Czech Romantic composers 19th-century classical composers 20th-century classical composers Czech music educators 20th-century Czech male musicians 19th-century Czech male musicians Prague Conservatory alumni