Antonin Dvorak – Rusalka – Song To The Moon: make music part of your life series

Antonin Dvorak – Rusalka – Song To The Moon

TheWickedNorth

Antonin Dvorak – Rusalka – Song To The Moon

• Music

  • “Rusalka, Act 1: “Song to the Moon”” by Stefan Soltesz, Lucia Popp and Münchner Rundfunkorchester, Lucia Popp, Stefan Soltesz

Rusalka (opera)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

For the opera of the same name by Alexander Dargomyzhsky, see Rusalka (Dargomyzhsky).

Rusalka (pronounced[ruˈsalka] ( listen)), Op. 114, is an opera (‘lyric fairy tale’) by Antonín Dvořák. The Czechlibretto was written by the poet Jaroslav Kvapil^[1] (1868–1950) based on the fairy tales of Karel Jaromír Erben and Božena Němcová. Rusalka is one of the most successful Czech operas, and represents a cornerstone of the repertoire of Czech opera houses.^[1] A Rusalka is a water sprite from Slavic mythology, usually inhabiting a lake or river.Dvořák had played viola for many years in pit orchestras in Prague (Estates Theatre from 1857 until 1859 while a student, then from 1862 until 1871 at the Provisional Theatre). He thus had direct experience of a wide range of operas by Mozart, Weber, Rossini, Lortzing, Verdi, Wagner and Smetana. Rusalka was the ninth opera Dvořák composed.^[2]For many years unfamiliarity with Dvořák’s operas outside Czechoslovakia helped reinforce a perception that composition of operas was a marginal activity, and that despite the beauty of its melodies and orchestral timbres Rusalka was not a central part of his output or of international lyric theatre. In recent years it has been performed more regularly by major opera companies.^[2] In the five seasons from 2008 to 2013 it was performed by opera companies worldwide far more than all of Dvořák’s other operas combined.^[3]The most popular excerpt from Rusalka is the “Song to the Moon” (“Měsíčku na nebi hlubokém“) from act 1 which is often performed in concert and recorded separately. It has also been arranged for violin and used on film sound tracks.

Antonín Dvořák

Composition history Růžena Maturová as the first Rusalka Kvapil’s libretto, based on Erben‘s and Božena Němcová‘s work, was written before he had any contact with the composer. The plot contains elements which also appear in The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen and in Undine by Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué,[1] and has been described as a “sad, modern fairy tale”, in a similar vein to his previous play, Princessa Pampeliška.[4] The libretto was completed by 1899, when Kvapil began looking for composers interested in setting his text. His composer friends were engaged with other works, but mentioned that Dvořák was looking for a project. The composer, always interested in Erben’s stories, read the libretto and composed his opera quite rapidly, with the first draft begun on 22 April 1900 and completed by the end of November.[5] Coming after his four symphonic poems inspired by the folk-ballads of Erben of 1896–97, Rusalka may be viewed as the culmination of Dvořák’s exploration of a “wide variety of drama-creating musical techniques”.[2] Performance history Rusalka was first performed in Prague on 31 March 1901, with Růžena Maturová as the first Rusalka. It became an enormous success in Czech lands, and soon gained success also abroad.[6] The first performance outside Czechoslovakia took place in Ljubljana.[7] The opera was given in Vienna by a Czech company in 1910; in German translation it was given in Stuttgart in 1935. The UK stage premiere was at Sadler’s Wells Theatre in 1959; an 1983 production by English National Opera was filmed and revived several times.[5] In January 2014 the Metropolitan Opera staged its revival of Rusalka with acclaimed soprano Renée Fleming in the title role.[8]

Eric Kleiber – Dvořák: The Wild Dove (Holoubek), Op 110, Wedding Dance: great compositions/performances

Eric Kleiber – Dvořák: The Wild Dove (Holoubek), Op 110, Wedding Dance

2ndviolinist

Recorded in 1931. Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra

Thanks to Neal for allowing me to use his excellent transfers. You can find this and many other wonderful selections and information at his website: http://nealshistorical.wordpress.com/

The Wild Dove (also known as The Wood Dove; Czech: Holoubek), Op. 110, B. 198 (1896), is the fourth orchestral poem composed by the Czech composer, Antonín Dvořák. Composed in October and November 1896, with a revision in January 1897, the premiere was given on 20 March 1898 in Brno under the baton of Leoš Janáček. The story is taken from the poem of the same name from Kytice, a collection of ballads by Karel Jaromír Erben. The four musical scenes describe the story of a woman who poisoned her husband and married another man shortly afterwards. A wild dove then sits on the grave of her dead husband and sings a sad song day after day. The wife feels guilty and commits suicide at the end by jumping and drowning in a river.

Erich Kleiber, 1890 — 1956.
The eminent Austrian conductor, Erich Kleiber (father of Carlos Kleiber), studied at the Prague Conservarory and the University of Prague.

Erich Kleiber made his debut at the Prague National Theater in 1911; Then he conducted opera in Darmstadt (1912-1919), Barmen-Elberfeld (1919-1921), Düsseldorf (1921-1922), and Mannheim (1922-1923). In 1923 he was appointed Generalmusikdirektor of the Berlin State Opera.

Erich Kleiber’s tenure was outstanding, both for the brilliant performances of the standard repertoire and for the exciting programming of contemporary works. In December 1925 he conducted the world premiere of Alban Berg‘s Wozzeck. In 1934, in protest against the Nazi government, he resigned his post and emigrated to South America. He conducted regularly at the Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires from 1936 to 1949. Having first conducted at London’s Covent Garden in 1937, he returned there from 1950 to 1953. He then was appointed Generalmusikdirektor once more of the Berlin State Opera in 1954, but resigned in March 1955, before the opening of the season, because of difficulties with the Communist regime.

Erich Kleiber was renowned for his performances of the music of Mozart and L.v. Beethoven. He also composed; among his works are a Violin Concerto, Piano Concerto, orchestral variations, Capriccio for Orchestra, numerous chamber music works, piano pieces, and songs.

Arthur Sullivan – The Mikado – Overture: make music part of your life series

FROM: Fledermaus1990

Arthur Sullivan – The Mikado – Overture

Conductor: John Carewe
Orchestra: Nürnberger Symphoniker