Presents
Josef Bohuslav Foerster
Quintet for Winds in D Major, Op.95
Josef Bohuslav Foerster (1859-1951) was born in Prague and first studied with his father who was a leading organist and Professor at the Prague Conservatory. Foerster studied organ at the Prague Organ School and composition at the Conservatory. Upon graduation he took over from Dvorak as chief organist in one of Prague's leading churches. He was on friendly terms with all of the leading Czech composers and was initially influenced by Smetana and Dvorak. He worked as a music critic in Hamburg after marrying the leading Czech soprano who was engaged at the Hamburg opera. In Hamburg, he met and became close friends with Mahler as well as Tchaikovsky. When Mahler left for Vienna, Foerster followed him and became a professor at the New Vienna Conservatory. After the formation of the Czech Republic in 1918, he returned to Prague where he taught for many years at the Conservatory. His music while initially influenced by Smetana and Dvorak, later changed as did musical styles, although he always remained a tonal composer. After his first period, his works no longer could be considered nationalistic as he stopped employing the idioms of Czech folk music and adopted a more perstonal and mystical style. He composed in most genres and left a considerable amount of chamber music including five string quartets and three piano trios.
The Wind Quintet in D Major was composed around 1909 and published in that year. It was dedicated to Professor Ferdinand Pfohl who was a kind of Renaissance Man of Music. One of the highly respected music critics in the German speaking world, an important author of biographies of famous musicians including one on Wagner, a composer, and a founder and director of a conservatory to name but a few of his accomplishments. Foerster would cerainly have known him from his time Hamburg where both were active at the same time. Foerster was working in Vienna at the time he composed the work which was intended for a group of wind players in the Vienna Opera Orchestra. In four movements, the opening Allegro moderato has a genial, upbeat dance-like quality to it. The second movement, Andante sostenuto, has a folksy woodland quality reminiscent of his friend Mahler. Next comes an Allegro scherzando which sounds a bit like Paul Dukas, however, the trio section has a very Austrian Lăndler quality to it. The finale, starts with a somewhat diffident Moderato e tranquillo section before the more exuberent main section is brought forth.
This is a fine late Romantic era work which certainly deserves concert performance but which can be warmly recommneded to experience wind players.
Parts: $29.95
Parts & Score: $36.95
