Upon your first audition of Má Vlast, a cycle of Symphonic Poems by the Czech composer Bedrich Smetana (1824-1884), it would not be a stretch for you to accidentaly believe that you are listening to incidental music from an epic Wagner opera. Surprising when you consider this statement by the composer himself in 1882; "I am, according to my merits and according to my efforts a Czech composer, and the creator of the Czech style in the branches of dramatic and symphonic music - exclusively Czech." But the opening pages of Vysehrad (The High Castle), the first piece in the cycle, with its ethereal harp, brass choir and nobility permeating every note, transport you into the dramatic world of Tristan und Isolde. The evocative power of the music is tangible. Its depiction of an old castle, overlooking the banks of a river in Prague, filled with a history recalling the glorious days of Bohemian royalty, is as epic and pictoresque as any Wagnerian immolation. And conductor Claus Peter Flor and the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra members are all in on the story, and relate it to us with an unmatched level of stoicism, courage and pathos.

Vltava (The Moldau), the second tone poem in the cycle, became so popular that it is now often performed and recorded on its own as an orchestral showpiece. It depicts, and very well so, the long journey of the Czech river from its origin as a small spring to its culmination as a wide and vast seaway. The merging of two separate brooks into one stream at the onset, accomplished by the gradual blend of two flutes and a clarinet, is magically captured in this recording. The flow of the river at night under a starry sky, with its combination of harp, flutes, and shimmering strings is also very well portrayed here. You can almost see the moon's reflection glistening on the water. The turmoil of the rapids will toss you around, and the sense of joy when reaching Prague, with its rapidly flowing and expanding waters drifting away in the distance will capture your imagination in this vivid performance.

Another distinctive work in the cycle is the one titled From Bohemia's Woods and Fields, a piece described by the composer himself as a musical portrayal of the various emotions brought to the surface when traveling through the Czech countryside. From folk dances to clouds rolling over wide open fields, everything is expertly thrown together and manipulated to form a gripping portrayal of life.

The suite concludes with pieces more entrenched in the valiant history of the Czech people, from the Medieval times to a glance into its bright future. The grandiose atmosphere and power of Vysehrad make a dramatic comeback at the end that leads the way to an uplifting conclusion. At this point, the audience was on its feet and crying "Smetana" over and over, during the inaugural performance in 1882. Unfortunately, the composer himself could not hear a note of the music or the applause, because of his total deafness since 1874, caused by syphilis which killed him in 1884.

BIS have just added another excellent recording to their comprehensive and sonically impressive catalogue. And as mentioned earlier, Claus Peter Flor and the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra do it justice by bringing to the table a performance of this work that can easily rival the iconic interpretations by such conductors as Ancerl and Kubelik, who incidentally, was one of Flor's teachers.

Jean-Yves Duperron - January 2011