About this Artist

• Biography

Editorial Reviews

Vaclav Talich and the Czech Philharmonic recorded Smetana's "Má Vlast" three times, and each recording was made under a different form of government. They recorded it in a socialist republic ruled by Russia in 1954, and in a protectorate ruled by Germany in 1941. Only in 1929 when Czechoslovakia was free from outside rule for the first time in 400 years did Talich and the Czech Philharmonic record Smetana's hymn to Czech nationalism in a self-governing democracy. That first Talich "Má Vlast" is the recording lovingly remastered on this 2008 Opus Kura release.

All three recordings have their merits -- more immediacy in 1941, more presence in 1954, and more sense of place in 1929 -- but the overall sound does get noticeably cleaner as recording technologies improve. There are nevertheless good reasons for asserting the first performance was the best. Talich had been music director of the Czech Philharmonic since the year after his country declared independence in 1918, and his first take on "Má Vlast" is fresh, direct, and courageous. Though the sweeping harps that open the work are a bit tentative at first, the performance quickly coheres into a heartfelt patriotic musical statement. Talich's conducting is straightforward, with tempos taken without rubato and tempo shifts taken with minimal display, but his interpretation is deeply committed to the music. With strong strings, warm brass, pungent woodwinds, and an ensemble so sweet it almost sings, the Czech musicians play as if the fate of the nation depended on them. Despite the relative crudity of the HMV equipment and the obvious antiquity of the shellac originals, the sound here is clear enough to let the performance shine through. James Leonard, All Music Guide

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