Czech Songs

Magdalena Kožená presents a recital of Czech songs, together with the Czech
Philharmonic under the baton of Sir Simon Rattle. The first impression of Czech songs
may be atmospheric nature scenes, or stories about pretty peasant girls and village
pranks, but the selection on this album demonstrates that the imagination of Czech
song composers stretched far wider. For example, Bohuslav Martinů’s Nipponari were
inspired by Japanese culture, whereas his folksy Songs on One Page obtain a deeper
meaning knowing that he wrote them in the US, having fled the Nazi threat. His
colleagues and contemporaries Hans Krása and Gideon Klein did not manage to get
away, and both died in concentration camps. Krása’s German-language Four Orchestral
Songs show a fascination with nonsense verse typical of avant-garde circles in the early 
1920s. Klein’s Lullaby can be traced back to Jewish folk songs, yet its musical realization
displays an openness to French musical styles. And no Czech song recital would be
complete without good old Antonín Dvořák, whose Evening Songs and Songs, Op. 2 are
included. Many of these works are best known with piano accompaniment, but are
presented here in orchestrations. The Czech Philharmonic and Sir Simon Rattle
marvellously bring out all the colours, while Kožená once more showcases her mastery
in vernacular song.
Czech Songs is star mezzo-soprano Magdalena Kožená’s sixth album as part of her
exclusive collaboration with Pentatone, after having presented the baroque cantatas
recital album Il giardino dei sospiri and the songs in chamber-musical setting
project Soirée in 2019, as well as Nostalgia together with Yefim Bronfman in 2021 and the
title role of Handel’s Alcina together with Marc Minkowski and Les Musiciens du Louvre
in 2024. The current album was preceded by Folk Songs (2023), on which she also joined
forces with the Czech Philharmonic and Sir Simon Rattle. Rattle conducts the world’s
greatest orchestras and, since 2019 has returned annually to conduct the Czech
Philharmonic, of which he will become Principal Guest Conductor as of the 24/25 season.
He made his recording debut as pianist on Pentatone alongside Magdalena Kožená
on Soirée (2019). In 2022-23 Rattle and Magdalena Kožená were the Czech Philharmonic
Artists in Residence. The Czech Philharmonic is one of the world’s orchestral gems,
recognised for its rich tradition with the Czech masters as well as European
repertoire. Since 2022, the orchestra has released Mahler’s Fourth, Fifth, Second and
First Symphony on Pentatone as part of a complete Mahler cycle to appear on the label.

Bohuslav Martinu (1890-1959) , Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904) , Hans Krasa (1899-1944) , Gideon Klein (1919-1945)

• Martinů: Nipponari – Cycle of seven songs for female voice and small orchestra, H68
• Martinů: Pisnicky na jednu stranku (Songs on One Page), H. 294
• Dvořák: Abendlieder, Op. 3
• Dvořák: Písne na slova Gustava Pflegra-Moravskeho, Op. 2
• Krasa: Orchestral Songs (4), Op. 1
• Klein, Gideon: Lullaby

September 2024