Karel Kovařovic (9 December 1862 6 December 1920) was a Czech composer and conductor from Prague.
From 1873 to 1879 he studied clarinet, harp and piano at the Prague Conservatory.[1] He began his career as a harpist. In 1900 Kovařovic became the conductor of the national theatre in Prague, due mostly to the success of his opera Psohlavci (The Dogheads), after the novel of the same name (about Jan Sladký Kozina) by Alois Jirásek. His engagement at the National Theatre lasted twenty years, until 1920.[1] He composed seven operas.
Kovařovic is most remembered today for the revisions he made to Leoš Janáček's Jenůfa for its premiere in Prague, and it was in his version that the opera was heard for many years.
A recording of The Dogheads, featuring Beno Blachut, exists.
| Years composed | title | acts | première | libretto | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1882–1883 | Ženichové (The Bridgrooms) | 3 acts | 13 May 1884, Prague, Prague National Theatre | Antonín Koukl after Simeon Karel Macháček | |
| 1885 | Cesta oknem (The Way through the Window), op. 4 | 1 act | 11 February 1886, Prague, Prague National Theatre | Emanuel František Züngel, after Eugène Scribe and Gustave Lemoine | |
| 1890–1891 | Noc Šimona a Judy (The Night of Saint Simon and Jude) | 3 acts | 5 November 1892, Prague National Theatre | ||
| 1891 | Edip král (Oedipus rex) | 3-act opera-parody | 19 March 1894, Prague Žofín Hall | August Vojtěch Nevšímal after Sophocles | |
| 1895–1897 | Psohlavci (The Dogheads) | 3 acts, 6 scènes | 24 April 1898, Prague National Theatre | Karel Šípek after Alois Jirásek | |
| 1898–1901 | Na Starém bělidle (At the old bleachery) | 4 scènes | 22 November 1901, Prague National Theatre | Karel Šípek afterBožena Němcová | |
| 1905 | Slib (The Promise) | Prologue only | 9 December 1921, Prague, Prague National Theatre | Karel Šípek after R Zamrzla |
| Composed in | title | acts | première | libretto | choreography | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1884 | Hašiš | 1 act, 2 scenes | 20 June 1884, Prague National Theatre | Václav Reisingra | ||
| 1889 | Pohádka o nalezeném štěstí (Fairy tale of found fortune) | 3 acts, 7 scenes | 8 April 1889, Prague National Theatre | Augustin Berger | ||
| 1889 | Královničky (Little Queens) | |||||
| 1889 | Sedm havranů (Seven Ravens) | |||||
| 1909 | Na Záletech (Love Affairs) | 10 scènes | 1909, Prague | A. Viscusi |