Vítězslav Novák - Orchestral Works, Vol. 1 (Marek Štilec)

Information

Composer: Vítězslav Novák

1. South Bohemian Suite, Op. 64: I. Pastoral. Horizon
2. South Bohemian Suite, Op. 64: II. Reverie. Forests & Ponds
3. South Bohemian Suite, Op. 64: III. Once upon a Time. March of the Hussites
4. South Bohemian Suite, Op. 64: IV. Epilogue. To My Homeland
5. Toman and the Wood Nymph, Op. 40

Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra

Marek Štilec, conductor

Date: 2020

Label: Naxos

https://www.naxos.com/CatalogueDetail/?id=8.574226

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Review

If you lift up the CD from its interior hinge, the picture underneath is of the cover of an earlier recording of Novák’s orchestral works by the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra under JoAnn Falletta, (Naxos 8.573683); nevertheless, one must assume that this new disc is the first volume in a new series to be recorded by Moravian Philharmonic - a suitably excellent plan.

The South Bohemian Suite begins the trail and how apt it is, I feel, for me to be listening to this music as we approach the 150th Anniversary of Novák’s birth on 5th December. In fact, this was the first work of his that I got to know when I purchased a rather poor quality LP in what was still communist Prague in 1980 (I’m sorry I can’t recall the performers, as I gave the record away). I’m not sure. Though. if this piece represents the best of the composer, as it was his attempt to revert to the nationalism of the pre-First World War years, which produced some of his first, better-known compositions like the ‘Slovak Suite’ and ‘In the Tatra Mountains’. Even so, it is pleasingly attractive and inventive.

The first two of the four movements have a distinctly pastoral outlook. The first, which is the longest, translates as ‘Pastoral Horizons’ and includes a lovely falling melodic phrase, which acts as a leitmotif haunting the other movements often in disguised forms. The second, equally delicate, is ‘Reverie, Forests and Ponds’. The third is a contrast, ‘March of the Hussites’ and grows louder as the soldiers pass, with repeated rhythms. The fourth is a brief coda re-iterating the opening moods and leitmotif. Another recording worth mentioning is by the Carlsbad Symphony Orchestra under Douglas Bostock (alto 1199). They take longer over the details and atmosphere of each section and I feel that they capture the March with more excitement, but this new version is better recorded and consequently has more clarity.

Toman and the Wood Nymph is really a symphonic poem based on a Czech folk tale. In his younger days, Novák had taken a keen interest in folk melodies and tales especially when visiting the Moravian district of Valenchia, and many of his works are much influenced by what he heard and notated at the time - for example, as in the ‘Valachian Dances’ for solo piano Op 34. The story of this orchestral work is simple. The score is described as being ‘…after a Bohemian legend’ and the composer sums up the plot as follows: ‘impelled by a strange restlessness, Toman decided to visit his lover on Midsummer Eve. He was not mistaken; she had forsaken him for another. He went off to the forest and died in the arms of a woodland fairy”. The music develops out of a Moravian folk melody into a passionate, full-bloodied Romantic, almost Straussian world, touching on the erotic; it seems that Novák even described it as ‘a sonic orgy’. It is certainly luxuriously scored, and I must add that the more I hear of Novak the more I am astonished by his personal style of orchestration.

The work has been recorded by other orchestras over the years but this version is the one for me. The flavour and mood are conveyed with depth of understanding and orchestral clarity. The ending comes off particularly well and the recording is spacious. With a score like this, it is important to hear the composer’s intentions in detail. In addition, the booklet notes by Richard Whitehouse are the usual mixture of the useful and the relevant with not word wasted.

There is a caveat however. One does feel a little cheated nowadays if a disc comes in at less than an hour of music, and with so much Novák out there, some of it rather overlooked, it a pity that a space could not have been found for another piece. However, it’s best to look forward to the other volumes in the not-too-distant future.

-- Gary Higginson, MusicWeb International

More reviews:
ClassicsToday  ARTISTIC QUALITY: 9 / SOUND QUALITY: 8

https://www.audaud.com/novak-orchestral-works-1-moravian-philharmonic-orchestra-naxos/

https://www.naxos.com/Review/Detail/?catalogueid=8.574226&languageid=EN

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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/Vítězslav Novák

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Marek Štilec (born 1985) is a Czech conductor. He studied at the Prague Conservatory and the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. Štilec has also participated in the masterclasses of Michael Tilson Thomas and Jorma Panula, among others. At the age of 17, Štilec founded the orchestra, Quattro, in which he acts as conductor and artistic leader. He collaborates with a wide range of leading orchestras and also works with many choirs. Štilec is a highly sought-after music label conductor and has recorded for Naxos and Arcodiva labels, as well as with Czech television and radio broadcasting.
https://cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marek_Štilec
https://www.arcodiva.cz/en/agency/instrumental-soloists/marek-stilec/

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