The generous quantity of orchestral music Martinů wrote between his late teens and early thirties is as good as unknown; some of it, indeed, has never even been performed. Toccata Classics continues Ian Hobson’s pioneering recordings of those early orchestral works with the one-act ballet Stín (‘The Shadow’) from 1916, which has its world premiere in this recording – astonishingly, in view of the quality of the music it contains. Although the action of the ballet is dark – a girl dances with her shadow in the presence of Death – Martinů’s score presents a series of remarkably buoyant and cheery dances, some of them showing the good-natured influence of Czech folk traditions, others evocative and atmospheric – and almost all of them irresistibly charming.
The score and performance materials for this recording were prepared by Michael Crump, the leading UK expert on Martinů’s music and author of Martinů and the Symphony (Toccata Press, 2010).
Ian Hobson, pianist and conductor, began his international career in 1981 when he won First Prize at the Leeds International Piano Competition. He is in increasing demand as a conductor, particularly for performances in which he doubles as a pianist. Ian Hobson appears on a number of other Toccata Classics recordings as pianist; further CDs in both capacities are under discussion.