New documentary sheds light on Nazi attempt to reinterpret Bedřich Smetana's music

On Thursday, Czech Radio Vltava will premiere the documentary Postscriptum of Bedřich Smetana. Created by Tomáš Dufka, head of the radio archive, the project examines pivotal political and social events, such as the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia, through the lens of Smetana's music, which left a powerful legacy after the composer's death. The documentary uses dozens of newly discovered materials from the Czech Radio archive, among other sources.

Tomáš Dufka|Photo: Khalil Baalbaki, Czech Radio

Bedřich Smetana's music held significant political influence for the Czech nation, often serving as a source of unity during pivotal historical moments. So, it makes sense that there were extensive efforts to reinterpret his operas and symphonic poems. Smetana's music continues to resonate deeply with Czech listeners, for its cultural heritage and national pride.

There were a number of figures who helped Smetana’s influence become so long-lasting. The documentary’s maker, Tomáš Dufka, reflected on some of them and their influence for Czech Radio:

"When I was thinking about this topic, it led me to the figure of Zdeněk Nejedlý. He is a key figure in shaping the legacy of Bedřich Smetana. But he is not the only one. The conductor Václav Talich is also significant."

According to Dufka, the Nazis made the conductor and teacher Talich a figure on whom they built the image of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia in relation to the Czech nation. Dufka explains:

Václav Talich|Photo: Czech Television

"The Nazis made Václav Talich a figure that they based the image of Czechs on. In this speech, Nejedlý attacks all the so-called traitors to the nation, and within that, he also is talking about Talich."

While Nejedlý considers Bedřich Smetana to be the more original Czech composer, Talich favored Antonín Dvořák.

"We now take it for granted that the music is Czech. Of course, it already had that Czechness when Smetana composed it. But anything can be put into music. It can be put into different contexts. And the fact that it turned out this way and that it's perceived as purely Czech music is not a given. During the Nazi era, for example, there were attempts to reinterpret it."

'Libuše'|Photo: e-Sbírky, Musée national, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 DEED

The Postscriptum of Bedřich Smetana also goes back to the beginning of the Nazi occupation, when Smetana's My Nation (“Má vlast”) and the opera Libuše were performed at the Prague Music May festival in 1939. It was not until recently that Dufka managed to find the material from the performance:

"For a long time we thought that nothing would remain of this festival. It was broadcast on the radio and abroad. And about five years ago it turned out that it didn't survive, we don't have it in the Czech Radio archives. But the concert exists in Norway."

At the end of one of the recently-discovered recordings, it can be heard that even the Nazis were unable to prevent the Czech audience from applauding loudly at the Prague Music May.