The Day of Good Deeds

Bohuslav Martinů May – August 2003 The Day of Good Deeds World Premiere My Life with Bohuslav Martinů Excerpts from the Newly Outcoming Reedition of the Book by Charlotte Martinů Charlotte Martinů through the Eyes of Her Friends and Other Personalities - Reminiscences The Cleveland Connection - 60 Years On Martinů in the Air - - All over the World Martinů EVENTS Martinů NEWS Second issue 2003 The International Bohuslav Martinů Society The Bohuslav Martinů Institute Contents WELCOME Gerd Lippold .........................................3 THE BOHUSLAV MARTINŮ FOUNDATION HAS A NEW PRESIDENT ..........................3 NEW MEMBERS OF THE IBMS ...................3 THE DAY OF GOOD DEEDS Unknown Stage Work of Bohuslav Martinů through the Eyes of a Conductor Milan Kaňák .................................... 4 - 5 AN (UN)FINISHED OPERA BY BOHUSLAV MARTINŮ Opera Review Petr Veber ............................................5 MY LIFE WITH BOHUSLAV MARTINŮ Excerpts from the Newly Outcoming Reedition of the Book by Charlotte Martinů ............................ 6 - 7 CHARLOTTE MARTINŮ THROUGH THE EYES OF HER FRIENDS AND OTHER PERSONALITIES Reminiscences ...............................8 - 11 CHARLOTTE MARTINŮ ALWAYS GRACEFUL AND STANDING ALL HER LIFE ON BOHUSLAV’S SIDE ....................12 - 13 THE CLEVELAND CONNECTION – 60 YEARS ON Gregory Terian ..............................14 - 15 ALFRED WOPMANN, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR AND PROGRAMMING DIRECTOR OF THE BREGENZ FESTIVAL, DEPARTING AFTER TWENTY YEARS Aleš Březina, Jana Vašatová ................. 16 THE FATE OF AN OPERA Review on the New Book Jarmila Gabrielová .............................. 17 THE GREEK PASSION German Premiere ................................ 17 THE BOHUSLAV MARTINŮ FESTIVAL 2003 IN PRAGUE - PREVIEW ......................... 17 THINKING ABOUT ULRICH UCHTENHAGEN Richard Klos ...................................... 18 REMEMBERING ULRICH UCHTENHAGEN Aleš Březina ...................................... 18 MARTINŮ’S CORRESPONDENCE WITH UNIVERSAL EDITION Eva Velická ........................................ 19 MARTINŮ IN THE AIR - ALL OVER THE WORLD What Steen Frederiksen, Chairman of the European Broadcasting Union’s Music Group, Says about the Promotion of B. Martinů Preben Albrechtsen .......................20 - 21 MARTINŮ EVENTS 2003 ....................... 22 MARTINŮ NEWS ..................................23 THE MARTINŮ INSTITUTE’S CORNER ........23 Charlotte Martinů in New York, 1940s BOHUSLAV MARTINŮ BY BÄRENREITER ................................ 24 2 Welcome Dear members of the IBMS, The Bohuslav Martinů Foundation our friends, dear readers, Has a New President This issue of the Bohuslav Martinů artist, nor had she studied music, On 10th February 2003 the President of the Bohuslav Newsletter is dedicated to Charlotte she possessed considerable and Martinů Foundation, Dr. Viktor Kalabis, asked the Board to Martinů. In autumn this year it will detailed knowledge of almost every relieve him of his function. On reaching the age of 80 his be 25 years since she died. work of Bohuslav Martinů, not only health had worsened to such an extent that he no longer In the biographies of great com- about its genesis, but also its charac- felt able to effectively fulfil his duties. posers, wives usually play a sub-or- teristic structural features, and this The Board accepted his resignation with full understan-ding dinate role, standing in the shadow of to a degree, which amazed even the and, apart from expressing its deep thanks for his leader- their famous husbands. Unless they experts. For decades, she was a true ship, it nominated him an Honorary Member of the Board for are independent artists in their own and always reliable companion on life. This entitles him to be present at every Board meeting, should he so wish. right, like Clara Schumann or Alma the road the com-poser trod, where At the same meeting, the former vice-president, Prof. Ivan Štraus, was elected the Mahler, the wives of many musicians his restless and changeable nature new president. A young composer from Brno, Dr. Vít Zouhar, the son of Martinů’s are not even known to the general encountered not only successes, friend, choirmaster Zdeněk Zouhar, was elected vice-president. public by name. In many cases they but also failures, hesitations and are not even menti-oned in music doubts, and where projects were In the next issue we will bring the portrait of the composer Viktor encyclo-pedias although broken off and begun anew. Kalabis, an Honorary Member of the Board. they probably ex- The Swiss com-poser erted considerable and opera director Ivan Štraus influence on Rolf Liebermann I am 66 years old violinist. I graduated from the creativity of once coined the the Prague Conservatory and Academy of Performing their composer un-pleasant phrase Arts in Prague and completed my studies with an MA husbands. Many “widows are al- at the Moscow Conservatory (1966-68) in the class of the admired ways frightful.” of Galina Barinova. In September 1968 I was appointed works of a com- Liebermann ap- the Assistant at the Music Faculty of the Academy poser are incon- parently wanted of Performing Arts and became a member of the Czech ceivable without to say that they Trio with Alexander Večtomov and Josef Páleníček. the direct parti- stand in the way In 1975 I was dismissed from the Academy due ci-pation of the of propagation and to political reasons and became a member of the Par- wife in the compo- interpretation of dubice Chamber Orchestra, a small town 100 km east of sitional process and the works that are Prague. Later on I was invited to found the new Conservatory there, where I taught for without their selfless left over. This is abso- 10 years, in the meantime becoming a soloist of the Prague Symphony Orchestra and assumption of the joint lutely untrue in the case the leader of the Suk String Quartet. After the revolution in 1989 I was called back to day-to-day tasks, which of Charlotte Martinů. Until the Academy and became vice-dean for foreign relations for 7 years. In 1991 were not always easy. her very last years, she worked I became a member of the Board of the Martinů Foundation. I currently teach at the What role did Charlotte Martinů hard and fought where necessary, Academy, I am the President of the Czech branch of ESTA (European String Teachers play in the life and works of the with singleness of purpose, to get Association) and of the Josef Suk Society. composer Bohuslav Martinů? Did she her husband’s works better known; My interest in Martinů‘s music goes back to my student days: at my graduation provide impulses and did she assist despite all resistance in Europe concert at the Conservatory I played his Violin Concerto No. 2, becoming only in the birth of compositions? Did which was divided politically and the third violinist to have played it in Czechoslovakia. Apart from that I played she advise and console, did she act culturally, she built bridges and the Arabesques, Intermezzos and chamber music - Serenades, Trios etc. The same con- as a secretary? Did she stand in the created important contacts for certo was on the programme of my final concert at the Academy, under the direc-tion door, keeping the creative space free the future. of Dr. Václav Smetáček, the Chief Conductor of the Prague Symphony orchestra. from outside interference? Charlotte Gerd Lippold, As a member of the Czech Trio I came into close contact with Mme Charlotte Martinů did all that in one person. Chairman Martinů. With my cousin, Marek Jerie, now of the Guarneri Trio, we often played both Although she was not a practicing Duos for violin and cello, once even especially for Mme Martinů during one of her visits to Prague. With the Suk Quartet we often played the 2nd, 4th and 6th Quartets, the Sextet and the Serenade for 2 Clarinets and String Quartet. WE WELCOME NEW MEMBERS OF THE IBMS I hope to remain a humble servant to Martinů‘s music and, together with other “believers”, to help to expand his glory around the world. (January – April 2003) For the full version of the biography and for the biography Dear members of the International Bohuslav Martinů Society, of the vice-president see: http://www.martinů.cz/foundir.htm Up to the present day, the IBMS has 172 members from 26 different countries and is growing steadily. Beginning with this issue, we are going to publish a special “welcome” column to present new members. Here are the names of those, who have joined Ted Perry George Edward Perry, the founder of Hy- the IBMS since the beginning of this year: perion Records, died on 9th February last. He was a great Martinů enthusiast and Avner Arad, New York, USA Natasha Kosistorum, Hannover, Germany The General one of the first members to subscribe Kjetil Bergheim, Oslo, Norway Joachim Krist, Mechernich, Germany to the IBMS. Patrícia Bretas, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil Mr. and Mrs. Latham, Wedmore, UK Assembly 2003 During the 1980s he produced a notable Daniela Bruera, Berlin, Germany Trygve Madsen, Lörenskog, Norway will take place series of recordings of Martinů chamber Oda Caspar, Berlin, Germany Reinhard Niemann, Overath, Germany on December 7th at 10 00 a.m. works by the Dartington Ensemble. Colin Craig, Sevenoaks, UK Simon Perry, London, UK at the Martinů Institute, One of his dream projects had been to L. Dintinger, Stockport, UK Eckehard Pistrick, Gatersleben, Germany Nám. Kinských 3, 150 00 Prague 5, th record the complete cycle of Martinů sym- Gideon Flusser, Tel Aviv, Israel J.B. Quantrill, Perth, UK on the occasion of the 9 annual phonies

Load more