Karel Kovařovic: Piano Concerto in F minor, Op. 6

Karel Kovařovic (1862-1920)

Piano Concerto in F minor, Op. 6

I. Allegro affetuoso 0:00
II. Larghetto 16:12
III. Vivace (scherzando) 24:23

Zdenek Jilek, piano
Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra
Josef Hrncir, conductor

Karel Kovařovic (1862 – 1920) was a Czech composer and conductor. From 1873 to 1879 he studied clarinet, harp and piano at the Prague Conservatory. He began his career as a harpist. In 1900 Kovařovic became the conductor of the national theatre in Prague, due mostly to the success of his opera The Dogheads, after the novel of the same name (about Jan Sladký Kozina) by Alois Jirásek. His engagement at the National Theatre lasted twenty years, until 1920. He composed seven operas. Kovařovic is most remembered today for the revisions he made to Leoš Janáček's Jenůfa for its premiere in Prague, and it was in his version that the opera was heard for many years. A recording of The Dogheads, featuring Beno Blachut, exists.