B. Smetana – Czech Dances, Book 2 (Firkušný)

0:00 – 1. Furiant 5:04 – 2. Slepička (Little Hen) 7:59 – 3. Oves (Oats) 13:01 – 4. Medvěd (Bear) 16:04 – 5. Cibulička (Little Onion) 20:48 – 6. Dupák (Stomp Dance) 24:12 – 7. Hulán (Lancer) 28:46 – 8. Obkročák (Stepping Round) 31:40 – 9. Sousedská 36:02 – 10. Skočná After the Battle of White Mountain in 1620, Czech lands were ruled by the House of Habsburg and the Czech language was essentially eradicated, only being used by illiterate peasants. That lasted until the events of Czech National Revival, which meant a systematic re-establishment of the language. These favourable times for our culture lasted approximately since the 1770s to 1850s, which is when Smetana was born (1824). Until then great Czech composers (Benda, Vaňhal, Dussek, Voříšek...) usually lived a cosmopolitan life, leaving the country at the first possible occasion. Smetana’s lifelong goal was different: revival of national music and e