Janácek did not write a great quantity of symphonic works. Besides the Lachian Dances and an outline of the symphony Danube, they merely number the four compositions on this CD: three symphonic poems and the celebrated Sinfonietta.

The symphonic poems, created within eight years between 1913 and 1920, reflect the turbulent political events and social tensions of the time, as well as Janácek’s keen interest in Czech and Russian literature. The Ballad of Blaník is based on a poem by Jaroslav Vrchlický, while The Fiddler’s Child was written to verses by Svatopluk Èech.

When reading Gogol’s novella Taras Bulba, Janacek was impressed by its hero, a Cossack chieftain, and referred to the author as the “prophet of the Slavs”. Sinfonietta, indisputably the most significant Janacek orchestral piece, was premiered in June 1926 in Prague by Václav Talich with the Czech Philharmonic.

Tomáš Netopil, the winner of the Sir Georg Solti International Conducting Competition and a regular guest of leading orchestras (Berliner Philharmoniker, London Philharmonic, etc) and prestigious opera stages worldwide, has materialised his singular vision of Janacek’s music in this recording made with the splendid Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra.