Smetana's The Bartered Bride is a happily festive and rustically jolly opera, set in nineteenth century Bohemia and is the earliest Eastern European opera still regularly performed. It had a complicated gestation, originally having its 1866 premiere in two very long acts with dialogue between the arias and received a very muted reception. Smetana fiddled with a lot after this, breaking it into three shorter Acts and writing recitative to link up the different musical sections. The various dances that liven up each Act were added for, and if you've been reading my thrilling opera history serial you should be able to guess what's coming next, Paris whose audiences always demanded a ballet and composers resisted at their own peril.

The story, which trots along at a fair pace throughout the three acts (there are few slow moments) is as follows. Jenik (tenor) loves Marenka (soprano). However, Marenka's father Krusina (baritone) has hired a marriage matchmaker, Kacel (bass), despite some quiet objections from Marenka's mother Ludmila (soprano). Kacel has made a deal with Micha (bass), a farmer, for Marenka to marry Micha's son Vasek (tenor). Marenka, an independent lass, won't have any of this as she is very much in love with Jenik, thank you. Act II is in an Inn. There is a bit of a sing about the wonders of beer, then poor Vasek, stuttering all the while, sings about how his mother Hata (contralto) will humilate him if he can't pull off this marriage to Marenka, as poor Vasek is a bit simple. Marenka comes to the pub, and realises that Vasek is her intended via Kacel, so they sing a duet when she tries to convince him that Marenka is a bit of a slag, and instead he should marry this other beautiful and smart local girl.

Meanwhile, Kacel has run into Jenik and has offered him 300 gulden if he leaves Marenka. Jenik only consents on the condition that the money is paid to the long-lost elder son of Micha. Kacel is unaware that this, in fact, Jenik himself (meaning him and Vasek are brothers- confused yet?). All the town then comes back onstage to witness the deal being done.

Act III opens with another of Vasek's stuttering arias to a plodding accompaniment of reeds and heavy strings. However, some touring comedians roll into town (solely for the silly ballet Parisian audiences demanded) and with them is a young circus dancer called Esmeralda (soprano). Marenka hears about Jenik's deal and to spite him agrees to marry Vasek, denouncing Jenik to his face. Kacel agrees to pay the 300 smackaroos as soon as Marenka has signed up with Vasek. She signs, but at just this moment Hata and Micha recognise Jenik as their long-lost son meaning that they therefore owe Jenik, not Vasek, to Marenka. Bit of a celebration, until panic spreads about an escaped bear. However it turns out that this is in fact Vasek in a circus costume, having been egged on by his new love Esmeralda.

Smetana was aiming to write pure Czech inspired music, and to him this meant bold contrasts of mood, though to modern ears post-Stravinsky, this is more subtle in practice than this theory may imply. His characterisation borrows discreetly from Mozart and Rossini- possibly the two greatest opera comedy composers ever- but if you're gonna borrow, you do it from the best. And Smetana injects his arias with the occasional piquant Eastern European harmony. His music is catchy largely because he often builds from a simple melodic base, often a folk song or pseudo-folk song, and goes from there. This means the opera has a clarity that makes it extremely easy to understand and easy on the ear, despite the slightly confusing plot.

Highlights include Kacel's entrance aria Jak vam pravim pane kmotre (As I'm saying, my dear fellow) which seems to be Smetana's particularly jolly version of Rossini's famous Largo al factotum in both the quickfire nature of the text and the bouncing accompaniment with prominent bassoon which leads into an equally jolly trio with Krusina and Ludmila. Being a young Australian man, I am also particularly fond of the 'beer chorus' that opens Act II To pivecko to veru je nebesky dar (Beer's no doubt a gift from heaven). The finale to Act II takes the energetic overture melody and adds words as Kacel gets the Chorus to witness Jenik's new deal, but they turn to disgust when they discover that Jenik is selling out his love.

The jolly dances in each Act are often extracted as concert pieces, so for once the demands of the Paris Opera have been in our favour as Smetana's orchestral writing is always colourful in a folksy way- especially the most famous excerpt, Act III's Dance of the Comedians.

However my absolute favourite point of the opera is the exuberant overture, that feels like its about to spill out of the orchestra pit and over six supersonic minutes tumble all around the auditorium, with chattering woodwinds and racing strings.

My biggest complaint? The finale to Act III feels like its missing something, and I blame this solely on the nonsense of Vasek dressed up as the bear. It has no dramatic point whatsoever, and it feels as if Smetana just wanted to get the damn thing finished so he chucked on a dude in a bear suit. What should be a big jubilant finishing ensemble sounds half-hearted (especially whe compared to the end of Act II) and most of all, and this is so frustrating as to make my hair stand up on end, is that Smetana doesn't finish the opera on a tonic chord despite it being a very tonal work. Hence, it feels like we never get home and there is no resolution despite what the libretto is very clearly telling us.

This 1981 recording has been beautifully remastered by Supraphon, a label I've never heard of (judging by the amount of Czech in the sizeable booklet, that may be why). Many of the available recordings are in German, so that this one is in Czech is a benefit in itself. However, they could be singing in Esperanto for all I care- I'm always primarily after a sound I can enjoy. And I'm pleased to report that I enjoy this recording very much. Marenka, who probably has the most dramatic scope in the opera, is sung by Gabriela Benackova, who blends the right amount of guile and sweetness. Peter Dvorsky sings the quick-witted and romantic Jenik. His top notes are a touch strident, but otherwise he's great. Vasek is sung by Miroslav Kopp, who has the tricky task of keeping Vasek's stuttering arias human and even perhaps inspiring a little pity for this simple-minded soul bullied by his bossy mother (a delightul Maria Mrazova). Richard Novak's low register gets a workout as Kacel, but he does a great job combining Kacel's facets of entrepeneur and sinister matchmaker. The Czech Philharmonic Chorus and Orchestra under Zdenek Kosler are wonderfully, never dominating, always in balance and always crisp. The Chorus get quite a workout in this opera, and they do exceptionally well.

Included in the double CD is the complete libretto which is a great help if you're Czech isn't too crash hot.

Vital Stats
Original Language Title: Prodana nevesta (but with stacks of wacky Czech accents)
Common Language Title: The Bartered Bride
Music: Smetana (1824-1884)
Libretto: Karel Sabina
Premiere: Prague, 30 May 1866
Sung In: Czech. However not many opera companies have a Czech language coach on staff/available and for much of its life it has been performed in German (Die verkaufte braut). Nowadays though, the major houses will nearly always do it in Czech. The minor companies, if they perform it at all, often do it in the language of the audience.

Recommended: Yes