Bohuslav Martinu

LOUTKY / PUPPETS I-III

Edited by Ales Brezina

All three editions in one volume

Foreword and Critical Commentary by the editor
    (cz/ger/eng/fr)

Despite the extraordinary significance attributed to Bohuslav Martinu’s 14 short piano pieces entitled Loutky / Puppets, surprisingly little is known about the exact time and circumstances of their composition. It is however certain that these are the first works by Martinu which transcended his initial attempts at composition and they quickly found a publisher. Thanks to their lasting popularity particularly with young pianists, they were published in numerous editions. The pieces take the characters of Italian commedia dell’arte as their theme; Pierrot, Colombina and Harlequin. Also included are dance and ball scenes as well as scenes from the »personal lives« of the puppets.

The three editions of Puppets were composed between 1912 and 1925 in reverse order. The works all differ from another, beginning with different aesthetic starting points and ending with piano writing which gradually matures. Now the cycle is published for the first time in one volume.

H 7970, ISMN 979-0-2601-0420-4, 80 pages, price 19.95 EUR     BUY