How did it begin?

I’ve known Jirka Procházka for several years. We often discussed the idea of creating a showcase recording for him. As an opera singer at the beginning of what I believe will be a stellar career, he needed a recording of his work to present at auditions or international competitions. We slowly started compiling a selection of world-famous opera arias that he had in his repertoire.

One day, Jiří invited me to a small academic performance. Accompanied on the piano by Jiří Hrubý, he performed several songs from Leoš Janáček’s cycle Detvan Songs. Jirka’s spirited delivery, the bandit-themed texts, and the captivating, deeply emotional music made a powerful impression on me. The melody of the song Ej, nebudem ja dobrý kept ringing in my head, and I realized that if Jiří was to convincingly present himself at his young, student age, this was the music to do it with.

I shared my perspective with him, and gradually, in that moment—and as it later turned out, for the months to come—the idea of a CD featuring opera arias by Wagner, Smetana, Puccini, or Mozart began to fade. On the other hand, our shared enthusiasm for creating a recording of Leoš Janáček’s folk songs grew stronger.

We deliberately chose the working title Janáček’s Loves for its provocative and charming nature, but also because Janáček was a man of love. He loved life, music, women, and folk art… He had many loves but also experienced personal tragedies.

Over time, Jiří, together with Marek Čermák, gathered the pieces included on this CD. Upon reviewing the texts, we discovered that many were ballads depicting life’s tragedies—sepa­ration, war, unrequited love, murder, death… Indeed, folklore has captured all of life’s experiences since time immemorial.

We consulted the idea several times with Prof. Miloš Štědroň. We are incredibly fortunate to have this man, one of the world’s leading musicologists and Janáček scholars, in our hometown of Brno.

Jiří and Marek then began reaching out to other performers. Jana Krajčovičová and her crystal-clear soprano were an excellent choice. Likewise, the collaboration with cimbalom players Petr Gablas and Jiří Gužík. The girls’ choir was selected by choirmaster Jakub Klecker from the Kantiléna children’s and youth choir affiliated with the Brno Philharmonic. Both Jiří Procházka and I sang in Kantiléna at different times. The men’s choir was assembled from Jiří’s acquaintances and friends, all professional singers. The Opera Diversa orchestra was chosen primarily because it consisted of young musicians. Jiří Hrubý took his place at the harmonium, which was lent to us by Martin Jakubíček.

Michal Javůrek