or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
 
More Buying Choices
34 used & new from £1.29
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
   
Available to Download Now
 
Buy the MP3 album for £4.98
  
 
 
 
Smetana - Má Vlast
 
See larger image 
Share your own customer images

Smetana - Má Vlast

~ Bedrich Smetana (Composer), Antoni Wit (Conductor), Katowice Radio Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra), Polish Radio Orchestra & Chorus Katowice (Orchestra)
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
Price: £4.98 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In stock.
Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk. Gift-wrap available.

Want guaranteed delivery by Tuesday, November 10? Choose Express delivery at checkout. See Details
23 new from £2.99 11 used from £1.29
Buy the MP3 album for £4.98 at the Amazon MP3 Downloads store.

Special Offers and Product Promotions

Frequently Bought Together

Smetana - Má Vlast + Mussorgsky - Pictures at an Exhibition + Sibelius - Finlandia; Karelia Suite
Price For All Three: £14.94

Show availability and shipping details

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Mussorgsky - Pictures at an Exhibition

Mussorgsky - Pictures at an Exhibition

~ Modest Mussorgsky
4.8 out of 5 stars (4)  £4.98
Sibelius - Finlandia; Karelia Suite

Sibelius - Finlandia; Karelia Suite

~ Jean Sibelius
3.5 out of 5 stars (2)  £4.98
Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade

Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade

~ Nikolay Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov
5.0 out of 5 stars (2)  £4.78
Holst: The Planets / Elgar: Enigma Variations

Holst: The Planets / Elgar: Enigma Variations

~ London Philharmonic
4.7 out of 5 stars (11)  £4.98
Grieg: Peer Gynt Suites

Grieg: Peer Gynt Suites

~ Edvard Grieg
5.0 out of 5 stars (3)  £6.48
› Explore similar items

Product details

  • Orchestra: Katowice Radio Symphony Orchestra, Polish Radio Orchestra & Chorus Katowice
  • Conductor: Antoni Wit
  • Composer: Bedrich Smetana
  • Audio CD (15 Dec 1994)
  • SPARS Code: DDD
  • Number of Discs: 1
  • Label: Naxos
  • ASIN: B00000140M
  • Other Editions: MP3 Download
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 7,432 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

    •  Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

Customers Viewing This Page May Be Interested in These Sponsored Links

  (What is this?)
   Bedrich Smetana opens new browser window
www.Prague-Info.cz  -  Prague enchanted many celebrities. Let be enchanted as well! 
   Smetana CDs opens new browser window
www.cdconnection.com  -  Large selection of Smetana CDs in stock at discount prices! 
   Moldau opens new browser window
ChappellOfBondStreet.co.uk/Est1811  -  Search for & find nearly anything from our huge sheet music catalogue 
  
 

Listen to Samples and Buy MP3s

View the MP3 Album.

Samples
Song Title Time Price
Listen  1. Ma vlast (My Fatherland): No. 1. Vysehrad15:09Album Only
Listen  2. Ma vlast (My Fatherland): No. 2. Vltava (Moldau)13:13Album Only
Listen  3. Ma vlast (My Fatherland): No. 3. Sarka10:04Album Only
Listen  4. Ma vlast (My Fatherland): No. 4. Z ceskych luhu a haju (From Bohemia's Fields and Groves)12:46Album Only
Listen  5. Ma vlast (My Fatherland): No. 5. Tabor13:25Album Only
Listen  6. Ma vlast (My Fatherland): No. 6. Blanik14:53Album Only

On this CD:
  1. Má vlast
    Composed by Bedrich Smetana
    Performed by Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conducted by Antoni Wit

Product Description

Amazon.co.uk Review

Completed in 1878, Smetana's stirringly patriotic Má vlast ("My Country") comprises 6 tone-poems in all, including the much-loved and justly famous "Vltava" (which unforgettably charts the course of that eponymous Czech river). Most performances of Smetana's masterpiece (and there are plenty to choose from) last around 70 minutes, but Antoni Wit's unusually thoughtful interpretation approaches 80. Fortunately, this underrated Polish conductor directs with such likeable character and intelligence (and the orchestral playing in Katowice is so polished and responsive) that one's attention never wavers. True, Wit's imposingly broad "Vltava" may not be to all tastes (the peasant wedding some four-and-a-half minutes in is a rather less boisterous affair than usual), but generally speaking it's refreshing to encounter a Má vlast of such plentiful incident and engaging narrative flair. The sound is pleasingly atmospheric, if a wee bit short on sheer body and tonal lustre. So, if your budget won't extend to full price (where Rafael Kubelík's magnificent 1984 Orfeo account with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra continues to occupy a very special place of honour), Wit's notably individual version certainly offers striking value for money. --Andrew Achenbach

Suggested Tags from Similar Products

 (What's this?)
Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
 
ma vlast
bedrich smetana
antoni wit
wit
vltava
poland
naxos
moldau

Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags
 

Customer Reviews

3 Reviews
5 star:
 (3)
4 star:    (0)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
5.0 out of 5 stars (3 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Magical, 6 Oct 2006
By Daniel Lynch "D Lynch" (Lincolnshire, England) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
I too had only heard Vltava -- an orchestra I play in is doing it this year -- before I was bought this. I hadn't realised how 'enchanting' (good word for it, really!) this was! If you've only heard one of the poems and want to listen around them, this is a wonderful edition. The Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra is a brilliant orchestra - especially noted after I went to see them play Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique last year.

Utterly brilliant and highly recommended.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Enchanting, 27 Jun 2003
By D. Barton - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
When I bought this CD I had only ever heard 'Vltava' but I found that all the pieces were as enchanting and magical as that. Close your eyes and you could be there. 1st class performance and great value.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars HOMELAND SECURITY, 25 Jan 2009
By DAVID BRYSON (Glossop Derbyshire England) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)      
As good a way to judge a disc of Ma Vlast as I can think of is how well it manages to sustain my interest through all six tone-poems played without intermission. I have now undergone the experience twice, and that in close succession because I had enjoyed the first time through enormously. It comes to all but 80 minutes' playing time, and it was not a moment too long for me, even second time round.

I do not have recent performances in mind to use as comparisons, benchmarks, yardsticks or what have you. Many years ago there were three or four sets of Ma Vlast directed by Kubelik, and not surprisingly they were widely taken as a standard. My memory of them is fading, indeed well faded, but the impression that remains with me is that the tempi were in general faster than Wit's tempi here. I like Wit's tempi. There is plenty of energy when it is called for, notably in the fierce Sarka and in the nationalistic final Blanik. However the overall impact is of a relaxed direction giving this relaxed and most beautiful and attractive music time to breathe. Wit seems to understand the Bohemian idiom thoroughly, so far as I from out the northern island can judge of such a matter. The music never sags at any point, even in one very dreamy sequence indeed in Vltava. Most impressive of all from my point of view was that the two final pieces, expressing Hussite themes and added later to the original suite of four, kept my attention effortlessly despite being, I guess, a little less inspired than their predecessors. The whole suite evokes love of homeland and the intense joy of just being there, but the secure and unquestioning aspects of that are probably more musical and poetic than the more assertively nationalistic ones.

The recordings date from as far back as 1993 and 1994, and this surprised me because the tone would be very passable by 21st century standards. Insofar as I can detect any difference in quality, it is probably in favour of the earlier takes, the first two tracks consisting of Vysehrad and Vltava. This allows us to hear some particularly beautiful harp sound right at the start, and a truly lovely effect in the quiet stretch of Vltava that I mentioned just above. In fact the orchestral tone is as beautiful as it needs to be throughout, and the Polish National Radio Symphony can take pride in what it has done here.

This is not music to be agonised over but music to be enjoyed in a straightforward way. When I bought the set I had a rough but adequate idea of what I was looking for out of it, and I am in no doubt at all that I have got that. If you need comparative assessments then this is the furthest I can take you. For what it may be worth, I would say don't waste this short life stressing over earnest comparisons where this music is concerned. I think you can safely take a short cut, and I think you will not regret acquiring this set, especially at this Naxos price.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Only search this product's reviews


Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
   
Related forums

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Smetana - Má Vlast
88% buy the item featured on this page:
Smetana - Má Vlast 5.0 out of 5 stars (3)
£4.98
Smetana: Má vlast
5% buy
Smetana: Má vlast
£4.89
Mussorgsky - Pictures at an Exhibition
2% buy
Mussorgsky - Pictures at an Exhibition 4.8 out of 5 stars (4)
£4.98
Smetana: Má vlast
2% buy
Smetana: Má vlast
£12.69
Explore similar items

Listmania!

Create a Listmania! list

Look for similar items by category

Look for similar items by subject




i.e., each product must be in subject 1 AND subject 2 AND ...

Feedback

Ad

Your Recent History

 (What's this?)

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.