PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Loos, Helmut
TI  - Zdeněk Fibich's Musical Speech in His Concert Melodramas
DP  - 2010 Dec 11
TA  - Musicologica Olomucensia
PG  - 183--194
VI  - 12
IP  - 2
AID - 10.5507/mo.2010.022
IS  - 27879186
AB  - The genre of melodrama occupies an entirely unique place in art history. It has proven to be a singular genre of art throughout its history. Various types of melodrama, such as monodrama, duodrama and concert melodrama, are quite distinct from staged melodrama. Bohemian composers in particular have fostered melodramas; Georg/Jiří Benda is famed for being one of the first successful creators in this genre, and František Škroup established it in the Czech language as a national form. Its development reaches a climax with Zdeněk Fibich's six concert melodramas and Hippodamia, his trilogy of staged melodramas. These works have been designated as "the culmination of European melodrama" by Jaroslav Jiránek. This paper discusses how Fibich formulated his concert melodramas, and what their contents reveal about Fibich's position with respect to the politics of art.Translated by Judith Fiehler