Hermeneutic Analysis: Bedrich Smetana’s Ma Vlast: Vltava

(The performance of this piece follows the analysis)

As a piece of music dedicated to his country, the Czech Republic, and the programmatic nature of a Poem Symphonique, this piece is very much a musical representation of the Vltava. The Vltava, or Moldau is the river that runs through Prague, the capital city of the Czech republic. As such, the music begins with a trickle of water followed by an audible ebb and flow of what sounds like a river. Smetana accomplishes this through a light rhythmic trickle in the winds, which grows into a mass of polyphonic texture that flows seamlessly together, as if a river. The various fanfares and other musically descriptive moments represents the journey of the Vltava as it passes Vyserad (castle) and other monuments.

The piece also moves the listener in its display of a range of musical “symbol” or virtual emotion. The initial part of the piece, through the up and down contour of legato strings simulates a sensation of longing or even a hint of love, in this case love of “My Country”. The brass fanfare that enters inserting strong powerful chords initiates a sense of hope. Longing returns once again but builds with the entrance of the brass and the reiteration of the dominant in a sense of confidence and pride. This is followed by a flute reference to the beginning of the piece and the return of the river theme this time more confident aided by the hope in the middle, as well as a denser orchestration, more forceful yet still legato smooth and with flow. The brass once again enters with greater intensity, as if in the rapids of the river and again lands on the dominant but instead of returning to the original motif, it instead enters a variation, more stately and regal. This crescendos to the triumphant end of the piece, with a huge but swift decrescendo followed by a prominent accentuated perfect authentic cadence at the end. This last portion of the piece reaffirms a sense of pride and respect.

Again, because of the programmatic nature of the piece, we know that through representation and musical symbol this piece is an example of pride in Smetana’s country. Smetana, deemed the most important nationalistic composer (over Dvorak), subject to divisions in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, was attempting to provide a source of pride for the Czech’s of the time who lacked independence despite a unique cultural identity. As noted in the Grove Dictionary of Music, “When he began composing Má vlast…Smetana had been serving Czech national emancipation for more than ten years”. The melodies also can be derived from various Eastern and Northern European folk songs. The piece, for Smetana, was his way of connecting with his country and his people, using descriptions and melodic portrayals of places and ideas his country held dear.

Meta-Critique

I had a lot of difficulty within this method of delineating where and what could bleed in, especially in the onto-historical analysis section. I may have allowed too much historical analysis to bleed over, though in a nationalistic piece of this nature, I feel as though it may have been necessary.

I think that the ground for this kind of referential analysis could have also been more thorough and relatable if I had been able to conduct a full syntactical analysis here, but instead I was limited to the referential aspect only citing syntactical elements. The same exists with a phenomenological analysis. Part of why I love this piece so much, is the experience of it. Hearing and/or watching the strings move, their bows just like the flow of the river itself is amazing.

The brilliance of this piece cannot truly be understood until it can be looked it in more depth and through several areas of analysis. As such, this analysis could have been much stronger with the aid of an eclectic methodology.

Ma Vlast: Vltava Part I

Ma Vlast: Vltava Part II