The Noon Witch

The Noon Witch (or The Noonday Witch; Czech: Polednice), Op. 108, B. 196, is a symphonic poem written in 1896 by Antonín Dvořák which was inspired by the Karel Jaromír Erben poem Polednice from the collection Kytice. Polednice is based on the noon demon "Lady Midday" of Slavic mythology. It is one of a set of late orchestral works inspired by national themes which were written after his return to his native Bohemia from the United States.

"Lady Midday" Synopsis

A mother warns her son that if he does not behave she will summon the Noon Witch to take him away. He does not behave, and the witch arrives at the stroke of noon. The witch, described as a horrible creature, demands the child. The mother, terrified that the witch has actually come, grabs her son, and the witch begins chasing them. Finally the mother faints, grasping her child. Later that day, the father arrives home, and finds his wife passed out with the dead body of their son in her arms. The mother had accidentally smothered their son while protecting him from the witch. The story ends with the father's lament over the terrible event.

Composition

The piece is scored for the standard 19th-century symphony orchestra with the addition of a bass clarinet and tubular bell.

Dvořák's music follows the story closely and the orchestration is often used to illustrate characters and events: the oboe and bass clarinet are used to depict the misbehaving child and the witch respectively, whilst twelve strokes of a bell signal the coming of noon. During the witch's chase, the music alternates between two different time signatures as a further dramatic device.

A semi-public performance was given at the Prague Conservatory on 3 June 1896 under Antonín Bennewitz. Its first full public première was on 21 November 1896, in London, under the baton of Henry Wood.^[1] The piece lasts about 13 minutes.

References

External links

• The Noon Witch: Scores at the International Music Score Library Project
• Classical Public Radio Network on a recording of The Noon Witch
• Answers.com info

Antonín Dvořák
Operas	Alfred Armida Dimitrij King and Charcoal Burner Rusalka The Cunning Peasant The Devil and Kate The Jacobin The Stubborn Lovers Vanda
Symphonies	No. 1 in C minor (The Bells of Zlonice) No. 2 in B♭ major No. 3 in E♭ major No. 4 in D minor No. 5 in F major No. 6 in D major No. 7 in D minor No. 8 in G major No. 9 in E minor (From the New World)
Concertos	Cello Concerto in B minor Cello Concerto in A major Piano Concerto in G minor Violin Concerto in A minor Romance in F minor for violin and orchestra
Orchestra works	A Hero's Song Carnival Overture Czech Suite in D major Hussite Overture In Nature's Realm Legends My Home Nocturne in B Othello Overture Serenade for Strings in E major Slavonic Dances Suite in A major (American) Symphonic Variations The Golden Spinning Wheel The Noon Witch The Water Goblin The Wild Dove Tragic Overture
Vocal music	Moravian Duets Psalm 149 Requiem Saint Ludmilla Stabat Mater
Chamber music	String quartets No. 1 in A major No. 2 in B♭ major No. 3 in D major No. 4 in E minor No. 5 in F minor No. 6 in A minor, Op. 12, B. 40 Andante appassionato in F major B.40a No. 7 in A minor, Op. 16, B. 45 No. 8 in E major No. 9 in D minor, Op. 34, B. 75 No. 10 in E♭ major (Slavonic) String Quartet movement in F major B. 120 No. 11 in C major No. 12 in F major (American) No. 13 in G major No. 14 in A♭ major Cypresses B. 152 Other Piano Quintet No. 2 in A major Piano Trio No. 4 in E minor (Dumky) Romantic Pieces Serenade in D minor for Wind Instruments Silent Woods Sonatina in G major String Quintet No. 2 in G major String Quintet No. 3 in E♭ major (American) String Sextet in A major Terzetto in C
Piano music	Humoresques Legends Slavonic Dances Suite in A major (American)
Named for Dvořák	Dvorak (crater) Antonín Dvořák Theatre
Related articles	List of compositions Antonín Dvořák Museum Dvorak - In Love?
Portal:Classical music