Bedřich Smetana was born in Leitomischl, Bohemia (now, Litomyšl, the Czech Republic) on March 2, 1824, and died in Prague on May 12, 1884. The first complete performance of Má Vlast took place at the National Theater in Prague on November 4, 1882, with Adolf Čech conducting. Vltava is scored for piccolo, two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, three trombones, tuba, triangle, bass drum, cymbals, harp, and strings. Approximate performance time is twelve minutes.

In the autumn of 1874, Bedřich Smetana suddenly found himself without hearing. Smetana was forced to resign all of his public appointments, and it appeared that the career of the first great Czech nationalist composer was over. But Smetana’s passion to express unbounded love for his Czech homeland proved overwhelming. This devastating period witnessed the triumphant birth of Smetana’s orchestral masterpiece, Má vlast (My Fatherland). Smetana composed the collection of six orchestral tone poems during the period from 1874-1879.

Smetana dedicated Má vlast to the city of Prague. The first integral performance of the work occurred on November 4, 1882, with Adolf Čech conducting. This marked the reopening of Prague’s National Theater, following its destruction by fire in 1881. In his biography of Smetana, Václav Zelený described the event: “Everyone rose to his feet and the same unending storm of applause was repeated after each of the six parts…At the end of (the concert) the audience was beside itself and the people could not bring themselves to take leave of the composer.”

The following is Smetana’s description of The Moldau:

Vltava (The Moldau)—

Two springs gush forth in the shade of the Bohemian forest, the one warm and swift flowing, the other cool and tranquil. Their waters join and rush joyously down the rocky bed, glistening in the light of the morning sun. The hurrying forest brook becomes the River Moldau (Vltava), which flows across the land of Bohemia, widening as it goes. Passing through dark forests, the sounds of the hunter’s horn are heard ever nearer. Through meadowlands it passes where a wedding feast is being celebrated by peasants with song and dance. At night, water nymphs play in its gleaming depths in which are reflected fortresses and castles from the glorious past. At the Rapids of St. John, the stream becomes a roaring cataract, beating its way through rocky chasms, widening at last into the majestic river that flows through Prague, greeted by the mighty old fortress, Vyšehrad, where it vanishes over the horizon lost to the poet’s sight.