Bedřich Smetana

Bedrich Smetana

Bedřich Smetana was a Czech composer who pioneered the development of a musical style which became closely identified with his country's aspirations to independent statehood. He is thus widely regarded in his homeland as the father of Czech music...

's String Quartet No. 2 in D minor

D minor

D minor is a minor scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. In the harmonic minor, the C is raised to C. Its key signature has one flat ....

 is a chamber composition for string quartet

String quartet

A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...

. It's Smetana's last quartet.

Background

In June 1882, after composing the monumental cycle Má vlast

Má vlast

Má vlast is a set of six symphonic poems composed between 1874 and 1879 by the Czech composer Bedřich Smetana. While it is often presented as a single work in six movements and – with the exception of Vltava– is almost always recorded that way, the six pieces were conceived as individual works...

, operas Tajemství, Čertova stěna and other works, Smetana began thinking about the creation of his second string quartet. A month later he finished the first movement. In a letter to his friend Josef Srba the deaf and dejected composer presents the difficulties with the work, his misgivings and fears. He continued very slowly, and the whole composition wasn't finished until 12 March 1883. (Several minor changes were made after the work was completed). Smetana attended the first non-public performance in Spring (April?) 1883. The first public performance took place on 3 January 1884, at the Konvikt Hall in Prague

Prague

Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...

. The work was played by Ferdinand Lachner, Julius Raušer, Josef Krehan and Alois Neruda.

The quartet was published posthumously, in 1889.

Structure

The composition consists of four movements:

• I. Allegro
• II. Allegro moderato
• III. Allegro non più moderato, ma agitato e con fuoco
• IV. Presto

Smetana said, that the second quartet takes up from where the first finished: "...after the catastrophe, it represents the turbulence of music in a person who had lost his hearing". The musical construction and language are entirely new, unusual. The composition was at first received by the part of listeners and critics with hesitation, and even with objections. However, thanks to many successful interpretations (Czech Quartet, Smetana Quartet

Smetana Quartet

The Smetana Quartet was a Czech string quartet that was in existence from 1945 to 1989.- Personnel :1st violin* Václav Neumann , from 1943 to 1945* Jaroslav Rybenský, from 1945 to 1947* Jiří Novák , since 19472nd violin...

, Janáček Quartet

Janácek Quartet

The Janáček Quartet is a Czech string quartet musical ensemble founded in 1947 which is still currently active.- Origins and activities :The Janáček Quartet was formed in 1947 by students of Váša Černý at the Conservatory of Brno, originally under the name JAMU Quartet. The quartet initially...

etc.) the quartet today belongs to the great values of Czech music history and culture.