# Martinů - the essentials



## Portamento (Dec 8, 2016)

What works do you consider to be at the core of Martinů's comprehensive oeuvre?


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## Prodromides (Mar 18, 2012)

"The Epic of Gilgamesh" is what I consider to be the Martinů magnum opus.


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## Strange Magic (Sep 14, 2015)

I am a big fan of his First Symphony; also the Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra.


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## Dirge (Apr 10, 2012)

Martinu's String Quartet No. 5 (1938) is often deemed the chamber-music counterpart to the contemporaneous Double Concerto, both being highly wrought, earnestly passionate works not far removed in time or spirit from Bartók's Music for Strings, Percussion & Celesta and Divertimento. The Quartet also adds an element of personal anguish and frustration of a kind found in Janacek's "Intimate Letters," and the late quartets of Dvorak aren't entirely forgotten. It's Martinu's weightiest chamber work and a freakishly good anomaly among his seven quartets-an "unexpected masterpiece" as some liner notes aptly put it.
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:: Panocha Quartet [Supraphon]

_Memorial to Lidice_ (1943) is a beautiful work commissioned in 1942 by the American League of Composers, which had requested various composers to write works based on a war incident that had particularly affected them. In late May 1942 the Czech government, then in exile in London, sent specially trained soldiers to assassinate the sadistic Imperial Governor of Bohemia, a high ranking S.S. officer named Reinhard Heydrich. Heydrich died in the hospital in early June, and the Germans responded by annihilating the villages of Lidice and Lezaky, killing 2000 people in the process. Martinu chose to write about this incident.




:: Ancerl/CzPO [Supraphon]

Martinu's late but "youthful" Nonet (1959) is a tuneful and entertaining patchwork, often in a Stravinskian/Coplandesque neoclassical sort of way.
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:: Czech Nonet [Praga]


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## ST4 (Oct 27, 2016)

I can't remember specifically but his Percussion concerto (I'll find out) was really awesome. His Six Little Symphonies cycle is some fantastic miniaturized repertoire to know!


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## jim prideaux (May 30, 2013)

from a personal perspective his six symphonies, particularly 1-4....the second is one of my own favourite pieces of music 'full stop'.

the two cello concertos and the Rhapsody for viola......


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## Portamento (Dec 8, 2016)

I appreciate all the responses so far. I will shop for some of these works when my checkbook is feeling up to it!


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## SONNET CLV (May 31, 2014)

jim prideaux said:


> from a personal perspective his six symphonies, particularly 1-4....*the second is one of my own favourite pieces of music 'full stop'.
> *
> the two cello concertos and the Rhapsody for viola......


Inspired by this post, I've just popped the Symphony No. 2 into my CD deck, donned the headphones, and am now listening to the work via Bryden Thomson's interpretation with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra on the CHANDOS label (in the "Complete Symphonies" 3-CD box set CHAN 9103-5).









The symphony _is_ a delightful piece.

Martinů remains a problematic composer for me. I have more than several records/CDs of the composer's music, including the symphonies in a couple of interpretations, the piano concertos, the cello sonatas and other chamber pieces, the complete music for violin and orchestra, and of course _Gilgamesh_. But I don't turn to it too often. Yet, I can't exactly say why.

I know that I often think about playing Martinů, with that kind of feeling "I really should listen to those Martinů symphonies again" or "There are a couple of chamber works here by Martinů that I've not heard yet; I should get to them" -- yet, I generally don't. It may simply be that I have so much to choose from anymore that the Martinů takes a back seat.

The music just never struck me with that passionate hammer blow I often experience, especially with 20th century symphonic music. And I don't know why. This Second Symphony I'm listening to now is pleasant enough, and interesting in its themes and orchestration. But all I can say is Martinů remains one of the more ignored major composers on my music shelves. I really should explore his music more often.

I did for a time spend much time listening to the _Gilgamesh_ opera, mainly because I taught the epic poem for some years and utilized the Martinů opera as a supplementary work in my classes. Some of the orchestration reminded me of that from the first Indiana Jones movie, music by John Williams, which was a film in epic style (repetition, moon symbols, riding off into the western sunset at the end) that I also utilized as a supplement in my epic lectures. I've always wondered if John Williams was acquainted with the work.

Yes, I surely must pay more attention to those Martinů works. Thanks for reminding me.


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## pjang23 (Oct 8, 2009)

Don't miss the fantastic piano trios.


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## Lenny (Jul 19, 2016)

Strange Magic said:


> I am a big fan of his First Symphony; also the Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra.


Yes, the first symphony is really great. I don't know what happened after that (for me?) but I don't get what he's doing later. Some bits yes, but mostly it's not accessible for me.


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## Strange Magic (Sep 14, 2015)

Lenny said:


> Yes, the first symphony is really great. I don't know what happened after that (for me?) but I don't get what he's doing later. Some bits yes, but mostly it's not accessible for me.


With the symphonies, I agree. I've posted before that I felt Martinu's No. 1 was far and away his best, and that he proceeded to rewrite less original versions of it for the rest of his career.

Two nice shorter pieces are his _Toccata e Due Canzioni_ and _The Frescoes of Piero Della Francesca._


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## Omicron9 (Oct 13, 2016)

The complete string quartets for sure. Fantastic pieces. I have this set and can recommend it:

https://www.amazon.com/Bohuslav-Mar...41926&sr=8-8&keywords=martinu+string+quartets


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