Ivo Kahánek and the NdB Ballet 3

Leoš Janáček: On an Overgrown Path, JW VII/18 (choreography: Mário Radačovský)

Leoš Janáček: In the Mists, JW VIII/22

Leoš Janáček: Capriccio, JW VII/12 / for piano left hand and chamber wind ensemble (choreography: Megumi Nakamura)

Janáček’s body of work, deeply rooted in folk music, also encompasses the piano—arguably the composer’s most intimate instrument.

The first set of the piano cycle *On an Overgrown Path*—a collection of poetic miniatures—was created in stages between 1900, 1908, and 1911. Janáček composed five pieces for the cycle in 1900, at the age of 46. They were originally published as short pieces for harmonium in the *Slavic Melodies* (*Slovanské melodie*) series, issued by the teacher Emil Kolář from Ivančice. The expansion of the cycle was facilitated by editor Jan Branberger, who arranged for the publication of the pieces with the Prague-based publisher Bedřich Kočí in 1908. This publishing interest prompted Janáček to compose additional movements; the cycle eventually grew to ten pieces, to which the composer assigned poetic titles. These small, intimate miniatures, which evoke some of the composer’s personal memories, are today counted among his best-known and most frequently performed works.