Book contents
- A History of Music in the Czech Lands
- A History of Music in the Czech Lands
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Musical Examples
- Contributors
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- Part I Before 1800
- Part II The “Long” Nineteenth Century
- Part III The Twentieth Century and Beyond
- 18 The Mutual Exclusion Society: Musicology and Criticism in Early Twentieth-Century Prague
- 19 Janáček’s Jenůfa and Operatic Modernism
- 20 Avant-garde Aspects of Czech Interwar Music
- 21 An Evolving Dance with a Tragic Ending and a Tentative Revival: The Jewish Musical Experience in the Czech Lands
- 22 Czechoslovak Musicians in North American Exile
- 23 Categorizing Music, Classifying People: Music Research and Race Studies in the Czech Lands
- 24 The Nation’s Image in Songs: Folk Music Research and Revival in the Twentieth Century
- 25 Romani Music in the Czech Republic
- 26 Decolonial Resonances in Czech Opera after 1948
- 27 Jazz as Sound for the Stage: The Liberated Theater and its Progeny
- 28 Understanding Czech Rock from the Period of Normalization
- 29 Czech Film Music: From Potpourri to Sound Design
- 30 Czechs in Search of Slovak Music
- 31 Twentieth-Century Czech Female Composers in Cultural and Political Context: The Pre-1989 Music of Ivana Loudová and Sylvie Bodorová
- 32 Czech Classical Music in a Global World: Jakub Hrůša in Conversation with Aleš Březina
- Selected Bibliography
- Index
19 - Janáček’s Jenůfa and Operatic Modernism
from Part III - The Twentieth Century and Beyond
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 21 October 2025
Book contents
- A History of Music in the Czech Lands
- A History of Music in the Czech Lands
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Musical Examples
- Contributors
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- Part I Before 1800
- Part II The “Long” Nineteenth Century
- Part III The Twentieth Century and Beyond
- 18 The Mutual Exclusion Society: Musicology and Criticism in Early Twentieth-Century Prague
- 19 Janáček’s Jenůfa and Operatic Modernism
- 20 Avant-garde Aspects of Czech Interwar Music
- 21 An Evolving Dance with a Tragic Ending and a Tentative Revival: The Jewish Musical Experience in the Czech Lands
- 22 Czechoslovak Musicians in North American Exile
- 23 Categorizing Music, Classifying People: Music Research and Race Studies in the Czech Lands
- 24 The Nation’s Image in Songs: Folk Music Research and Revival in the Twentieth Century
- 25 Romani Music in the Czech Republic
- 26 Decolonial Resonances in Czech Opera after 1948
- 27 Jazz as Sound for the Stage: The Liberated Theater and its Progeny
- 28 Understanding Czech Rock from the Period of Normalization
- 29 Czech Film Music: From Potpourri to Sound Design
- 30 Czechs in Search of Slovak Music
- 31 Twentieth-Century Czech Female Composers in Cultural and Political Context: The Pre-1989 Music of Ivana Loudová and Sylvie Bodorová
- 32 Czech Classical Music in a Global World: Jakub Hrůša in Conversation with Aleš Březina
- Selected Bibliography
- Index
Summary
This chapter explores Leoš Janáček’s innovative and individualistic approach to opera, with a particular focus on his most frequently performed work, Jenůfa. Composed between 1894 and 1903, Jenůfa reflects Janáček’s interest in the concept of realism, influencing his choice of subject matter, the use of a prose text, and a compositional style rooted in spoken language. The chapter also discusses Janáček’s fascination with Gustave Charpentier’s 1900 opera Louise and its impact on Janáček’s musical language. Similar approaches can also be identified in Janáček’s other operas. The composer’s innovations encountered resistance within Czech musical circles, and it took more than a decade for them to receive even partial appreciation.
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- A History of Music in the Czech Lands , pp. 269 - 280Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2025
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