Vítězslav Novák - In the Tatra Mountains; etc. (JoAnn Falletta)

Information

Composer: Vítězslav Novák

1. In the Tatra Mountains, Op. 26
2. Lady Godiva – Overture, Op. 41
3. Eternal Longing, Op. 33

Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra
JoAnn Falletta, conductor

Date: 2017
Label: Naxos
https://www.naxos.com/catalogue/item.asp?item_code=8.573683

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Review

ARTISTIC QUALITY: 9 / SOUND QUALITY: 9

Here is yet another fine release from the Buffalo Philharmonic under its dynamic and enterprising conductor, JoAnn Falletta. All three of these works have been recorded before, almost exclusively by Czech artists, but the excellence of these performances shows, if any proof were necessary, that great music is unconstrained by national borders. Take the Lady Godiva Overture, and compare this version to the otherwise fine Libor Pesek with the BBC Philharmonic on Chandos. Falletta is clearly superior: swifter, more exciting, and every bit as well played and recorded.

The symphonic poems In the Tatra Mountains and Eternal Longing similarly have a long recorded history, dating back to the 1950s with Karel Sejna and Frantisek Stupka leading the Czech Philharmonic. These versions more than hold their own: they are just as confidently shaped, and of course far better recorded. More modern releases, from Pesek in Liverpool or Jílek and his Brno forces, may be difficult to source, and in any case don’t improve on Falletta and Buffalo to any marked degree.

Finally, a word on the music itself. Novák was a very highly accomplished composer. His music is “solid,” in the best sense. You always have a sense that he knows exactly what he’s doing: his forms make logical sense, his scoring is colorful and perfectly judged, and his thematic material is always distinguished, if not always distinctive–and therein lies the problem. His music often has an elusive quality–you might call it “elitist”–that has probably kept it from achieving greater popularity. It’s recognizably Czech, but not “folksy,” even when it employs folk-derived idioms. Especially in his nature-inspired pieces, you may find him akin to Delius, only with more muscle and a Slavic accent. To make its strongest impression, you need to live with it for a while. This release removes any excuse not to.

-- David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday

More reviews:
http://www.classicalsource.com/db_control/db_cd_review.php?id=14475
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2017/Aug/Novak_orchestral_8573683.htm
https://www.audaud.com/novak-in-the-tatra-mountains-lady-godiva-eternal-longing-buffalo-phil-orch-joann-falletta-naxos/
https://www.naxos.com/reviews/reviewslist.asp?catalogueid=8.573683&languageid=EN#235542

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Vítězslav Novák (5 December 1870 – 18 July 1949) was a Czech composer and pedagogue. Novak studied at the Prague Conservatory where he studied piano and attended Antonín Dvořák's masterclasses in composition. Stylistically, Novak was part of the neoromantic tradition, and his music has been occasionally considered an early example of Czech modernism. Novák's music nevertheless retained some elements of the late-Romantic style, with influence of French impressionism. Czechoslovak independence in 1918 and the Nazi occupation during WWII also sparked several patriotic compositions.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V%C3%ADt%C4%9Bzslav_Nov%C3%A1k

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JoAnn Falletta (born February 27, 1954 in New York) is an American classical musician and orchestral conductor best known as music directors of the Virginia Symphony (since 1991) and Buffalo Philharmonic orchestras (since 1999). She has also served as music director of the Long Beach Symphony and of the Women's Philharmonic Orchestra (San Francisco). Falletta has recorded over 70 albums. In 2011 she was appointed artistic director of the Hawaii Symphony Orchestra. Outside of the USA, Falletta was the 12th principal conductor of the Ulster Orchestra (2011-2014).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JoAnn_Falletta

http://www.joannfalletta.com/

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