The Back Story...

 

Bedřich Smetana was a Bohemian composer during the Romantic Period.  Like many composers of that time, Smetana composed music that contained ideas or motives that represented his country (e.g., folk tunes, landmarks). Composers who use this technique are considered Nationalist Composers.

 

The idea of creating a series of orchestral pieces with topics drawn from the legends and landscapes of his homeland, what he called “musical pictures of Czech glories and defeats”, came to Smetana in the early 1870s.  The piece we will be studying, Vltava, which is Czech for 'The Moldau', was conceived while staying with friends in the Czech countryside.  As his friend later wrote, "Here he heard the gentle poetic song of the two rippling streams. He stood there deep in thought. Looking around the enchantingly lovely countryside he followed the Otava (River), accompanying it in spirit to the spot where it joins the Vltava, and within him sounded the first chords of the two motives which intertwine, and increase, and later grow and swell into a mighty melodic stream.”

 

A devoutly patriotic work, Vltava is a symphonic poem that evokes the flow of the Vltava River from its source in the mountains of the Bohemian Forest, through the Czech countryside, to the city of Prague.  Smetana’s nationalistic music has made him a Czech national treasure and none of his pieces captures the Czech spirit as aptly as Vltava.  Listening to it is a journey of the imagination through the heartland of the Czech Republic, and captures, in music, Smetana’s love of his homeland.

 

 

 

What In The World Is Bohemian?

 

Bedřich Smetana was born in Bohemia, the country we now know as the Czech Republic.  The history of this land is very diverse because they have been ruled by many different people/groups, and have been known by a variety of different names.  Up until the collapse of the Habsburg monarchy at the end of World War I, this area was known as Bohemia.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After World War I, Bohemia was combined with Moravia-Silesia and Slovakia to form the independent country of Czechoslovakia.  During the Nazi occuption, Czechoslovakia was split into the Czech Socialist Republic and the Slovak Socialist Republic.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After World War II, pre-war Czechoslovakia was reestablished.  However, in 1948 the Communist Party took over and a single party government was formed.  It was not until January 1993 that the country peacefully split into the two independent countries that we know today: the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Where Is The Vltava River Located?

 

The Vltava river originates by a confluence of two streams, the Warm Vltava (Teplá Vltava), which is longer, and the Cold Vltava (Studená Vltava), sourcing in Bavaria.  The river starts by running southeast along the Bohemian Forest and then north across the Czech Republic.  Along its course, Vltava receives many tributaries.  In fact, it is the longest river within the Czech Republic, approximately 270 miles, and is commonly referred to as the Czech national river.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Music About A River?  Sounds Kind of Boring...

 

This music is anything but boring... at least I think so.  Remember, the purpose of a symphonic poem is to evoke images within the listener's mind.  Check out my 'photo album' of the things I see when I listen to this piece.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Activity - Becoming A Nationalist Composer

 

After listening to Smetana's Vltava while looking at the photo album, it almost seems like we have just taken a tour of the Czech Republic. That is what program music or a symphonic poem can do... it can transport you to another time or place.

 

So, what if you were a nationalist composer?  What images would you want to depict musically?  What sounds would you include?  What music would represent your nation?  

 

Your task is to create an Electronic Lap Board of a minimum of 10 images, 5 sounds (not music), and 5 pieces of music that represents your chosen 'nationality'.  You must use either PowerPoint, Keynote, Prezi, iMovie or something similar to complete the project.