Bedřich Smetana

Full Name: Friedrich
Profession: Composer

Nationality:

Biography: Bedřich Smetana was a Czech composer best known for advancing the development of a musical style that embodied Czech nationalism. His famous works include his opera The Bartered Bride (1866) and the symphonic cycle Má vlast ("My Fatherland"), which includes the well-known Vltava ("The Moldau").

Smetana displayed musical genius early, performing publicly by the age of six and engaging in music study with Josef Proksch in Prague. During the 1848 Prague uprising, his nationalistic compositions reflected the Czech cultural and political renaissance.

After struggling in Prague, he moved to Sweden, where his role as a teacher and choirmaster in Gothenburg proved formative. His return to Prague in the 1860s marked his significant involvement in Czech opera, leading to his position as principal conductor at Prague's Provisional Theatre, despite controversy over his progressive musical ideas.

Towards the end of 1874, Smetana's deafness did not hinder his creativity; instead, he composed prolifically, including Má vlast, which reflected Bohemia's history and landscape. His prominence increased in Czech music, but by 1884 his mental health declined, leading to his incarceration in an asylum and subsequent death in May of that year.

Internationally recognized for his operas and symphonic poems, Smetana's music, especially Vltava, is symbolic of Czech identity. His legacy is honored in the Czech Republic by tributes such as the Bedřich Smetana Museum in Prague and his burial at Vyšehrad Cemetery.

His work was influenced by Franz Liszt, Richard Wagner, and Hector Berlioz. Smetana's further relationship with other composers included a supportive friendship with Liszt and enmity towards Mily Balakirev regarding his opera productions.

Born: March 2, 1824
Birthplace: Litomyšl, Bohemia
Star Sign: Pisces

Died: May 12, 1884 (aged 60)