 Bedrich Smetana b. Litomysl, Czech Republic, March 2, 1824; d. Prague, May 12, 1884 Three Dances from The Bartered Bride 1. Polka 2. Furiant 3. Dance of the Comedians Bedrich Smetana was a champion of Czech music. Educated in Prague, a city known for its lively music scene, Smetana was the first composer to write pieces that were specifically Czech in character. In 1863, he founded a music school in Prague dedicated to promoting nationalist compositions and in 1866 Smetana became the director of a Provisional Theater focusing on the production of Czech opera and drama. He is best known for Má vlast (My Fatherland), a series of symphonic poems depicting the history, legends, and appearance of his native country. After several revisions, including the addition of the three dances treated here, Smetana’s nationalist opera The Bartered Bride, became the first Czech opera to be performed abroad. The play is about a young couple, Mařenka and Jeník, who want to marry. Unfortunately, Mařenka’s father would prefer she marry Vašek, son of Micha, a wealthy landowner. A marriage broker bribes Jeník into relinquishing his claim on Mařenka for 300 guilders, however Jeník complies only on the condition she be married to the son of Micha. The climax of the story comes when Jeník is revealed as Micha’s long-lost son from his first marriage, thus the terms of the contract between Jeník and the marriage broker allow Mařenka to choose between the two sons of Micha. She chooses Jeník, of course, and her father is left with embarrassment of having paid 300 guilders to wed his daughter to the wrong groom. Act I opens with a polka dance for the villagers. In the tavern scene in Act II a men’s chorus lustily celebrates the famous beer of the region, and the following furiant is a folk dance in the same spirit. The Dance of the Comedians announces the arrival of a traveling circus in Act III. |
|
