Episode #19 of Voices, our series about the Canon of 20th century choir music. This outline of leading choir compositions from that period was created during the TENSO chamber choir festival in 2009.
The two most important Czech composers of the 20th century, Leos Janácek en Bohuslav Martinů, are both represented in the Canon. Bohuslav Martinů with his Czech madrigals, of which Stephen Layton and the Dutch Chamber Choir made a recording in 2007. In the next hour you will hear a few of them, beside two large works by this Czech: his Soldier Mass for Baritone, Male Choir and Orchestra that undoubtedly will have an extra dimension on this eve of the commemoration of the death on 4 May. To conclude the composition that he wrote in 1954 by order of the Dutch Male Choir Die Haghe Sanghers: The Mountain of the Three Lights.
Bohuslav Martinů (1890-1959)
▪ Soldatenmis
Jan Bouse, kettledrum
Josef Ruzicka, piano
Vaclav Zitek, baritone
Charles Mackerras: Czech Philharmonic Choir & Orchestra
CD – Supraphon 32762 (1997)
▪ Mount of Three Lights
Richard Novák, bass
Petr Hanicinek, voice
Jan Hora, organ
Vladimir Dolezal, tenor
Pavel Kühn: Members of the Prague Radio Choir
CD: Supraphon 110751 (1994)
▪ Czech Madrigalen
Stephen Layton: Dutch Chamber Choir
CD: Globe GLO 5208 (2007)
