Bedřich Smetana

Bedřich Smetana is often considered the father of Czech music, one of the first to incorporate elements of Czech folklore into his music and, most notably, to use the Czech language in his operas instead of the more widely-used German. Indeed, he is credited with composing the very first opera in Czech history, The Brandenburgers in Bohemia. Smetana left behind an immense catalog of works for piano, orchestra, chamber music, and operas. He is still regarded as one of the pillars of Czech culture today: every year, the Prague Spring Festival opens with a performance of his sublime cycle Má Vlast, from which the second poem, The Moldau, the most famous, symbolizes the Vltava River through one of the most hauntingly beautiful melodies ever composed.