Composer of the Month 8/2009: Bohuslav Martinu   (selected by Peter van Dessel / Belgium)

Czechoslovakia 9.1.1990 Bohuslav Martinu was born on 8 December 1890 in Policka. He studied violin, organ and composition in Prague. From 1914 to 1918 he worked as a music teacher in his hometown. Thereafter he was violonist at the Czech Philharmonic Concert Hall in Prague. In 1923 he went to Paris for further studies and lived then in Paris, in the USA and in Italy. The last years of his life, Martinu spent in Switzerland. Martinu ranks among the most important Czech composers. He was a very flexible composer, whose work does not show a uniform style. However his extensive work always has a close connection to Czech folk music. Contrary to the traditional view of the romantic aera, music for him was not a subjective confession with deep meaning, but just playing with tones. Bohuslav Martinu died on 28 August 1959 in Liestal near Basel. In August 2009 we celebrate his 50th death anniversary. The video is a cut from Martinu's "Fantasy for Theremin, oboe, string quartet and piano" (composed in 1944). The clip with the "Keller quartet", Heinz Holliger (oboe), Robert Kolinsky (piano) and Carolina Eyck at the theremin was taken at the 10th Bohuslav Martinu festival in Basel in November 2006. More composer portraits can be found in the members only section.