Bedřich Smetana and his world-famous opera The Bartered Bride

The third part of our video series on Czech Music Greats is devoted to the work of one of the giants of Czech classical music Bedřich Smetana.

The Bartered Bride|Photo: Klára Stejskalová, Radio Prague International

Bedřich Smetana, whom Czechs like to call ”the father of Czech music”, composed eight operas.

Internationally he is best known for his 1866 opera The Bartered Bride and for the symphonic cycle Má vlast ("My Fatherland"), which portrays the history, legends and landscape of the composer's native Bohemia.

The Bartered Bride (Prodaná nevěsta) is a comic opera in three acts. Set in a country village, it tells the story of how true love prevails over the combined efforts of ambitious parents and a scheming marriage broker.

It was first performed at the Provisional Theatre in Prague in May, 1866, but was not immediately successful and was revised and extended in the following four years.

After a performance in Vienna in 1892, the opera achieved international recognition. It was first performed in Chicago in 1893, London in 1895 and in New York in 1909.

The Bartered Bride|Photo: Klára Stejskalová, Radio Prague International