Every so often a new recording comes along that hits a gap in your music knowledge of a composer or country so completely that it forces a reappraisal. Harmonia Mundi are particularly good at exploiting these opportunities, and in two very persuasive new discs of Czech vocal repertoire, they reveal the inner workings of two of the country’s flagship composers, Dvořák and Janáček. Both releases are handsomely designed, as you will see from the accompanying pictures, with beautiful artwork that accurately reflects the music on offer. Full text and background information only adds to the enjoyment. So what of the music itself?
The Dvořák first, given by the clear, ringing soprano of Genia Kühmeier and the slightly huskier mezzo of Bernarda Fink. There is an attractive edge to Kühmeier's sound in the Gypsy Melodies, settings of the poet Alfred Heyduk which are folksy round the edges, as might be expected, wearing their emotion close to the surface. The piano parts are scrunchy, with a nice tone in staccato from Christoph Berner. 'Kdyz mne stará matka' ('Songs My Mother Taught Me') has the most obviously appealing melody, which has given it a more exalted status in Dvořák's output, but in truth there are memorable tunes throughout.
The Moravian Duets are beautifully done here. Like the Gypsy Melodies they are earthy, and quite jaunty in places, but because of the slight difference in tone between the two singers they get just the right projection. The outdoorsy feel is helped by Harmonia Mundi's natural recording, and the three performers get a natural rise and fall to the music.
The Biblical Songs are later in Dvořák's output, and are more serious and thoughtful, as might reflect a later work. 'Skrýse má a paveza má Ty jsi' ('Thou art my defence and shield') is profound, 'Slys, ó Boze! Slys modlitbu mou' ('Hear my prayer, O God') more stern and questioning, while the more familiar 'Boze! Boze! Písen novou zpívati budu' ('Lord! Lord! I will sing a new song') and 'Zpívejte Hospodinu písen novou' ('O sing unto the Lord a new song') are really well done. These are fresh, insightful readings from Fink and Berner, and moving, too – and there is a slight husk to the tone that often brings a tear to the eye.
Listening to the Janáček straight after the Dvořák is a tactic that works really well, because this disc – now with choral forces – picks up with arrangements for voices of six of the same Moravian Duets. These are faithful reproductions, performed with the same natural enthusiasm and impressive empathy for the text from the Cappella Amsterdam, well schooled by Daniel Reuss.
Janáček often gives his music evocative titles that make you want to listen immediately, and that is the case here with the hunting songs The Wild Duck and The Wolf's Tail. His vocal writing, as with much of his music overall, is more stretched out, with greater emphasis on treble and bass but with less going on in between. This pulls at the tension and gives a greater air of foreboding, but there is a harsh and very expressive beauty too.
Especially striking is the composer's use of the harmonium for 'Our Evenings', bringing some voluminous colour to an already vividly shaded disc. Our Father, meanwhile, shows that the composer's grasp of religious music had an essentially secular side to it, as it did in the Glagolitic Mass. Here some of the more sacred writing is self conscious, but continues to be deeply emotional.
The Nursery Rhymes are especially descriptive and vivid, being essentially more modern counterparts of Dvořák's Gipsy Songs. 'The beetroot got married' is brightly coloured and crisply delivered, while there is a nice, clear tenor solo in 'There’s nothing better than springtime', both in Janáček's favourite tonal centre of A flat. Both these discs are collections that will surprise and delight those who think they already know the composers well. Beautifully sung and played, they are a credit to their performers, and one can only hope Harmonia Mundi extends their explorations to composers such as Smetana, Suk and Martinů. As it is they already have here two thoroughly invigorating exposés of Czech vocal music, and its many hidden gems.
