Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by James Judd
Vltava in Prague Photo: CC BY-SA 2.5
Má Vlast (My Fatherland) by Bedřich Smetana is cycle of six symphonic poems that describe the sights and sounds of Smetana’s native Bohemia along with famous military victories in Czech history.
The second movement 'Vltava' (The Moldau) is the most popular of the cycle. It paints a vivid portrait of Bohemia's mighty river from its source to its end.
Smetana came up with the idea for the opening during a picnic at the conjunction of two mountain brooks, with glints of sunlight on the rippling surface trickling over the rocks. In the music, the brooks join into a swift stream whose lovely melody comes from a folksong. As the river swells and courses through the countryside, we hear hunting horns, a wedding dance, nocturnal nymphs, foaming rapids and a majestic flow past Prague before disappearing from sight as it joins the Elbe.
Other works in the cycle:
Recorded by RNZ Concert, Auckland Town Hall, 12 August 2021
Engineer: Rangi Powick; Producer: Tim Dodd
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