Reactions to evening for Vladimír Válek
The editor-in-chief of the magazine Harmonie, Luboš Stehlík, appraised the recent evening of congratulations at the Smetana Hall of the Municipal House on the HARMONIE ONLINE website:
If I didn’t know that Vladimír Válek was 80, and if he didn’t require a walking stick, I would insist that I was at the concert of a conductor in his prime and at the height of his career. The rendition of Josef Suk’s symphonic poem Praga was excellent – dynamic, vivid, precise and virtually faultless on the part of “his” Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra, which he ran from 1985 to 2011 (!). His gestures and contribution were just as dynamic as 30 years ago. He took a piece that is to my mind compositionally problematic, incoherent and for a conductor almost a puzzle and rendered it as an interesting encounter with a product of the patriotic wave of the first decade of the 20th century.
It was not just the orchestra, Czech Radio and its director general, Peter Duhan, that paid tribute to Válek, but also his favourite pupil, Jan Kučera, now himself conductor of the PRSO. He took on Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony in C minor, op. 67, known as the “fate” symphony. His gestures oscillate between Válek and Furtwängler and on the face of it do not appear inspirational. But fortunately the reality is otherwise. He attempted with success to match his teacher’s precision, and his rendition of the well-known piece was distinctive, with logically constructed macro tectonics. It was less impressive in the details, given that the orchestra had the capacity for greater articulation and tension. It was a somewhat deafening Beethoven that neither offended nor dismayed but also failed, particularly in the details, to delight especially.
Violinist Václav Hudeček, who has worked with him for over 40 years, delivered vigorous birthday wishes to Vladimír Válek. With his own particular elegance and detachment, he performed the solo parts in Antonín Dvořák’s Romance and Mazurek. His emotionally rich tone is always a delight to listeners. (Romance was particularly nice). The orchestral accompaniment was exemplary!... Lucie Výborná and Jan Pokorný hosted the evening. If I overlook Mr. Pokorný’s tasteless unbuttoned jacket and his reading from a script, the presentation was pleasant and refreshing. I hope, however, that during “extraordinary” concerts in the “New Horizons” series the compering will be less official and formal and more informed and entertaining.
