Bohuslav Martinu

The composer and violinist Bohuslav Martinů was born in a church bell tower at Policka on the Bohemian-Moravian border on 8 December 1890. His father was the town's bell ringer and watchman. Bohuslav studied violin briefly at the conservatoire in Prague before being dismissed for failing his exams, and then continued his studies privately. He was a violinist in the Czech Philharmonic, and studied briefly with Josef Suk.

In 1923 he moved to Paris and studied with Albert Roussel. The German invasion of France in World War II drove him to the USA in 1941, where he settled in New York. It took him a while to get used to New York life, but he wrote a lot of music there, including his six symphonies, and was a teacher at the Mannes College of Music. His students included Alan Hovhaness, Jan Novák and Burt Bacharach.

At the end of his life Martinů moved to Switzerland, and died in Liestal on 28 August 1959, leaving nearly four hundred works, including the oratorio The Epic of Gilgamesh (based on the Babylonian epic) and the opera The Greek Passion (based on the novel by Kazantzakis). His music was influenced by jazz, Czech folk music, Bach, Corelli, Debussy, Stravinsky and Vivaldi.

A selection of articles about Bohuslav Martinu

Ensemble. Roads of Genius - Mike Wheeler listens to Bohuslav Martinů's Fourth Symphony

CD Spotlight. Exemplary Performances - Martin and Martinu choral music pleases Geoff Pearce. '... beautiful music, lovingly performed ...'

Ensemble. Loony Plot - Mike Wheeler listens to Sinfonia Viva's performances of Wagner, Milhaud, Martinu and Copland

CD Spotlight. Captivating Rhythms - Music for cello and piano, recommended by the late Howard Smith. 'Inspired programming, stellar performances and excellent recorded sound ...'

CD Spotlight. Christ Recrucified - Bohuslav Martinu's 'The Greek Passion', heard by Paul Sarcich. '... the production is nothing less than workmanlike, rising in places to something more inspired ...'

CD Spotlight. Flair and Musicianship - Short cello works by Bohuslav Martinu, heard by Paul Sarcich. '... small storms should be taken in small doses.'

CD Spotlight. Full of Life - Trio Koch plays Moszkowski, Milhaud and Martinu, recommended by Geoff Pearce. '... the players show a superb understanding of the melodic line and harmonic structure ...'

Ensemble. Beautifully Captured - Mike Wheeler listens to the Mavron Quartet

Ensemble. Special Musical Connections - Bill Newman attends a fundraising concert for the Raphael Sommer Foundation

Ensemble. Achingly Beautiful - Vivaldi's 'La verità in cimento' at Garsington Opera, reviewed by Roderic Dunnett

Ensemble. Christ Re-Crucified - Giuseppe Pennisi was at the Italian première of Bohuslav Martinu's Greek Passion

Ensemble. Invigorating Performance - The London Mozart Trio impresses Mike Wheeler

Profile. With Perfection in Mind - Bill Newman talks to all four members of the Wihan Quartet

CD Spotlight. Sterling Playing - Wendy Warner's interpretations of Popper and Piatigorsky, heard by Howard Smith. '... sovereign music-making deserving of the highest accolades.'

Ensemble. Another Treat - Martinu's 'Mirandolina' at Garsington Opera, by Roderic Dunnett

CD Spotlight. Consistently Refined - Debussy transcriptions, reviewed by Howard Smith. '... these alternatives are never less than striking ...'

Record Box. Full and Resonant - Violin concertos by Bohuslav Martinu, reviewed by Patric Standford

Record Box. Singing Qualities - Jennifer Koh plays Szymanowski, Martinu and Bartók, reviewed by Mike Wheeler

Provocations - Alistair Hinton and Chad Wozniak discuss Patric Standford's recent 'Provocative Thoughts'

Record box. The perceptive oboe - Nancy Ambrose King plays oboe concertos, reviewed by Basil Ramsey

Ensemble. A dazzling mix - Bohuslav Martinu's 'The Greek Passion' at London's Covent Garden, reviewed by Robert Hugill

CD Spotlight. Holstian time-warp - Martinu from the quartet bearing his name, by Roderic Dunnett. '... played with appealing clarity.'

Ensemble. Hour of Magic - Malcolm Miller is enthralled by seldom-heard East European music

CD Spotlight. Imagination and strength - The Gilgamesh epic, recounted by Robert Anderson. '... Zdenek Kosler admirably explores the depth of meaning Martinu revealed in the ancient tale ...'