Bedřich Smetana

Bedřich Smetana (2 March 1824 - 12 May 1884) was a Czech composer, one of his nation's most significant. He is best known for his symphonic poem Vltava - Die Moldau , the second in a cycle of six which he entitled Má vlast ("My Homeland"), and for his opera Prodaná nevěsta ("The Bartered Bride").
Smetana was the son of a brewer in Litomyšl in Bohemia. He studied piano and violin from an early age, and played in an amateur string quartet with other members of his family. Read more on Last.fm