Kate Molleson explores the maverick spirit, fierce ions and phenomenal twilight years of Leos Janacek. Today, we hear about the dramatic final scenes of his life.
Kate Molleson unpacks the dramatic final scenes of Janacek’s life.
Leoš Janáček was a true Czech original. He heard music in the way people talk on the streets, loved the local and made it universal - pouring his “speech melodies” into pioneering, devastating operas, and writing some of the most intimate confessionals in instrumental music. His life also came with a major plot twist – after years of toiling away unappreciated, he suddenly found fame in his 60s. Instead of winding down, Janáček revved up. All this week, Kate Molleson explores his maverick spirit, his fierce ions, and the phenomenal flood of inspiration of his twilight years.
Today, Janáček's relationship with Kamila reaches fever pitch, he pours his feelings into his extraordinary “Intimate Letters” Quartet, and he heads out on a holiday from which he’d never return…
Intimate Sketches: Waiting for You!
Lada Valešová, piano
From the House of the Dead Suite (iii. Holiday is Coming)
New Zealand Symphony Orchestra
Peter Breiner, conductor
Quartet No 2 ‘Intimate Letters’ 1st and 2nd movements
Takács Quartet
Quartet No 2 ‘Intimate Letters’ 3rd and 4th movements
Pavel Haas Quartet
On the Overgrown Path (No 7 - Good Night)
Bertrand Chamayou, piano
Produced by Amelia Parker for BBC Audio Wales and West
