If you were a composer born in central Europe in the 17th or 18th century, where you wound up writing inevitably depended on your religion. While that was fairly straightforward for someone like Bach, who sought out situations in the various Lutheran courts around Germany, it could be more complex for those born in Bohemia or Moravia, what we now think of as the Czech lands. A relocation to Germany might rob a composer of his identity, with many fine artists ending up being claimed by neither their homeland nor their adopted nation.

A classic case is Jan Dismas Zelenka (1679-1745), born in Lounovice pod Blaníkem, Bohemia, who spent the majority of his professional life in Dresden serving as a court musician and composer for the Saxon court. Respected by his contemporary JS Bach, he was nevertheless largely forgotten after his death. That’s a pity as his music is melodic, scrupulously crafted and highly innovative with bold harmonic gestures, intricate counterpoint and lashings of orchestral colour. 

No one has done more to revive his numerous Masses and oratorios as Czech harpsichordist and conductor Vaclav Luks and his...