Josef Bohuslav Foerster was a pivotal figure in Czech musical history and a lifelong friend of fellow German-speaking Bohemian, Gustav Mahler. Foerster’s Symphony no.2, dedicated to the memory of his sister, Marie, achieves a satisfying unity, with its sombre qualities eloquently transformed into a fervent apotheosis. Cyrano de Bergerac was Foerster’s most successful orchestral piece and is a perfect example of his late-Romantic finesse. Conceived as an autonomous work not intended as incidental music, its ‘five symphonic images’ each relate to a specific place in the drama.

Vol.1 is on 8574336. It contains Symphony no.1 and other orchestral works. Fanfare wrote, ‘The combination of Štilec conducting the Janáček Philharmonic in these works by Foerster is a winning one. …the performances strike a very fine pose, the recording is excellent, and the price is right’.

Foerster’s Symphony no.4 can be heard on 8557776 coupled with the Festive Overture, op.70 and My Youth, op.44. This won a 3-star review in the Penguin Guide: ‘The American conductor Lance Friedel is obviously committed to this music and gets a very good response from the Slovak orchestra. Recommended with enthusiasm’.

Czech conductor Marek Štilec is known as an interpreter of Classical orchestral repertoire and is a specialist in Czech Romantic and contemporary music. He has collaborated with orchestras the world over, including the New World Symphony, Ulster Orchestra, London Classical Soloists, Orchestra of the Swan, Berlin Camerata, Kammerphilharmonie Graz and Sinfonietta Bratislava. A prolific recording artist, he has made over 30 albums for labels including Naxos, ArcoDiva, cpo and Supraphon. In the field of historically informed performance Štilec has collaborated with ensembles including Czech Ensemble Baroque and Ensemble 18+.