This year’s festival theme, “Myths and Legends,” will envelop you from the very moment you step into the gardens of Troja Chateau. The atmosphere is deepened by the mythical statues of gods crafted by Dresden sculptor Johann Heermann, a follower of Bernini, which flank the chateau’s grand staircase. Their baroque drama blends seamlessly with the refined taste, sophistication, and artistic ambition of the summer residence’s patron, Václav Vojtěch of Šternberk—qualities you’ll surely sense immediately.
While seated in the hall where guests of the Šternberk family moved in similar fashion 350 years ago, you may feel yourself drawn into the currents of history. This splendid villa was built some 150 years after the golden Rudolfine era and shortly after the end of the Thirty Years’ War. The Czech lands would wait decades for the reforms of Maria Theresa, and several more centuries before the music you’ll hear tonight was composed.
We begin with Myths by Polish composer Karol Szymanowski from 1915, followed by the Trio by Czech pianist and composer Gideon Klein, written during his internment in Terezín. After the mystical Fantasy by Alexander Scriabin, the evening will shift to Vysoká near Příbram, the summer retreat of Antonín Dvořák, where he composed his famous Piano Quintet in A major, Op. 81, in 1887. The idyllic atmosphere of that setting is reflected in the music itself and resonates perfectly with the ambiance of Troja Chateau, the summer seat of the Šternberk family.
Of the four-movement quintet, which premiered at the Rudolfinum in 1888, J. B. Foerster wrote: “It is a work of rare value, full of fresh thematic material and profound depth. No single movement can be favored—its heartfelt Allegro and poetic Dumka are as captivating as the lively Furiant and playful Finale.”
PROGRAMME:
• Karol Szymanowski - Myths for violin and piano op. 30
Josef Špaček — violin
Miroslav Sekera — piano
• Gideon Klein - String trio
Joel Link — violin
Eva Krestová — viola
Hayoung Choi — violoncello
• Alexandr Skrjabin - Fantasy in B minor, op. 29
Lukáš Vondráček — piano
• Antonín Dvořák - Piano Quintet No. 2 , op. 81
Josef Špaček — violin
Henry Flory — violin
Jiří Kabát — viola
Hayoung Choi — violoncello
Lukáš Vondráček — piano
The concert will be recorded by Czech Television.
The programme is with a break. Estimated end is at 22:00.
