Kaprálová

Musica non grata, an international cultural project of the National Theater and the German Embassy in Prague, presents a series of online concerts with music by Nazi-persecuted composers.

Kapralova wrote the Military Sinfonietta op. 11 as her graduation composition in1937 and she dedicated it to the Czechoslovak president Edvard Beneš. The work was first performed by the Czech Philharmonic under Kapralova's baton at a concert organized by the National Women's Council at Lucerna Hall in Prague on 26 November 1937.  Due to the great success Kapralova opened with this piece the ISCM festival in London (1938) - performed by the BBC Orchestra.

Thanks to the published correspondence of Vítězslava Kaprálová From Letters Home, correspondence with parents in 1935-1940 (Toronto: THE KAPRALOVA SOCIETY, ©2015), we can read about the premiere of the composition.

Letters No. 66 and 72
I am sitting in my flat (with my dog Dezik next to me), shattered and glad that it is over. Not so much the concert itself, I wouldn’t mind doing it again, but the travel, the running around, the arguments with Mrs. Plamínková, etc. Don’t forget to send me all the reviews, the German ones in particular. I’m still in love with the President, and feel desperate that I probably won’t get to see him any time soon. I’ll describe to you, primarily Dad, how I got to meet him – so once more: When the servant ushered me in, he was in discussion with a secretary of the Women’s Council who talked at length about this year’s programme or something like that. When she finished, Mrs. Plamínková took me by the shoulder and said: “Mr. President, I’d like to introduce to you our composer and conductor.” Mr. President bowed, and I said: “Mr. President, I don’t know what to say to you, perhaps just that today I feel like I am heaven.” Continue reading.

Repertoire:
Military Sinfonietta, opus 11