Analysis Of Ma Vlast By Bedrich Smetana

Whether it be the early 2000s R&B I grew up enjoying or the sweet melody of “You Are My Sunshine” my mother sang to me as I fell asleep, since my youth, music has played a substantial part in my life. However, performing music holds the most treasured place in my heart, for the pieces I have performed always spark the fondest musical memories. The most significant of these memories was my experience performing "Moldau," movement two of Ma Vlast by Bedrich Smetana, with the 2016 North Dakota All-State Orchestra. Ma Vlast is Czech for My Fatherland, but it stands for my musical fatherland because when I played it, my passion for playing truly unfurled.

This piece began with a confident nod from my conductor, Dr. Chung Park. A petite man with black hair down to his jawline and a matching black goatee, Park demonstrated two characters: conducting and non-conducting. Before he would delicately raise his baton, Park displayed the most serene and casual charisma, periodically digressing to nonchalantly mention his visits around the globe to the 100 person orchestra. However, once his baton floated into position, that calm charisma transformed into an intense command over the orchestra, preparing the starting musicians for the masterpiece ahead.
To the eye, these flute players were two separate beings, but to the ear, their sounds perfectly flowed together with not a single break. Even their bodies leaned forward and back together with every turn passed. Below the whirlwind of mystifying flutes plucked the strings, patiently waiting their turn for the pauses within the flute sound. Their delicate plucking sounded in perfectly tuned chords and resonated in the still air around them. Then the clarinets creeped in underneath the other