SMETANA B. FROM THE HOMELAND, DVOŘÁK A. SONATINA FOR VIOLIN AND PIANO / J.Suk violin

Bedřich Smetana - From the Homeland. Two duets for violin and piano 12:44

Antonín Dvořák - Sonatina for violin and piano in G major, op. 100 (B183) 19:58

Antonín Dvořák - Romantic Pieces for violin and piano op. 75 (B150) 14:49

Josef Suk - Ballade in D minor, Op. 3b 8:43

Josef Suk - Four Pieces for Violin and Piano, Op. 17 18:04

Antonín Dvořák - Slavonic Dance No. 2 in E minor, Op. 46/I (B83) 4:44

Josef Suk violin

Jan Panenka, Alfréd Holeček piano

Violinist Josef Suk will celebrate his 75th birthday this year on August 8th. This vibrant personality of the Czech music scene, besides being the great-grandson of Antonín Dvořák and grandson of the composer Josef Suk is a legendary figure in his own right. He began his solo career in 1948 while still a student at Prague Conservatory, devoting his full time to it after an independent concert in Prague in 1954. His family legacy found expression in him and his extraordinary talent, and so he quickly became a much sought-after performer whose primary vehicle, appropriately enough, was the compositions of his famous forebears. He has spent more than fifty years on the most prestigious concert stages both in his home country, but also all over the world, as an authentic interpreter of Dvořák and Suk's compositions, and to this day, his recording of Dvořák's violin concerto with the Czech Philharmonic and Karel Ančerl is considered to be one of the best. His repertoire spans a broad range, however, from the pieces of Bach to the complete violin concertos of W.A. Mozart, to the sonatas of Beethoven and Brahms, to the compositions of the 20th century masters. Suk's recordings of Martinů's Violin Concertos Nos. 1 and 2 (with the Czech Philharmonic and Václav Neumann) or the Berg violin concerto (again with Ančerl and the Czech Philharmonic) have won a number of world prizes. Recently his collected recordings of the violin works of Josef Bohuslav Foerstr and Zdeněk Fibich have been greeted with much excitement. The breadth of his artistic activities is admirable. He began early on to play on the viola and quickly distinguished himself as a matchless performer on this instrument as well. His recording of the Martinů Rhapsody Concerto for Viola and Orchestra with the Czech Philharmonic helped to establish this piece in concert halls world-wide and is still regarded as a masterpiece. Josef Suk has travelled throughout the whole world not only as a soloist, but also as a member of the Suk Trio.

Numerous conducting and teaching engagements at home and abroad round out his artistic achievements.

(Supraphon 2004)