During a span of thirty years, Martinů wrote five large compositions with the title Fantasie, The earliest is La Fantaisie followed by the Fantasia and Toccata for Piano (1940), H 281, Fantasie for Theremin (1944), H 301, Symphonic Fantasies (Symphony No. 6, 1951–53), H 343, and Piano Concerto No. 5—Fantasia Concertante (1958), H 366. It is interesting to observe the evolution of Martinů's Fantasies from a contrapuntal work in one movement to an extended cyclical piece in free fantasy form.
La Fantaisie has usually been described as rough, cold constructivism, somewhat foreign to Martinů's true character. And indeed, we may observe in this piece a lack of lyricism, which clearly contrasts with the overt lyricism of Martinů's later compositions. However, it is always problematic to regard any composer's music mainly from the point of view of his late style. One should keep in mind that Martinů finished La Fantaisie in September 1929 in Paris where he had already lived for six years. In the 1920's, Paris was a center for modern music. Young composers found themselves in an environment which opposed the music of the Romantic and Impressionist era and it was for this reason that Martinů had originally come to Paris in 1923—not to study Impressionistic music but to learn to write in what he called the "constructivistic" way. For years Martinů worked on the development of his new style, experimenting with dissonances, linear music and modern counterpoint. In a letter summarizing his musical development prior to 1935, he stated: "...it was not until 1926 that I started to feel oriented in the chaos that 1 found when I arrived in Paris." La Fantaisie is one of the best examples of his efforts. The premiere took place in 1930 in the Manes Concert Hall in Prague, organized by a group of young Czech composers who regarded Martinu's constructivistic style as a model for new Czech music.
Aleš Březina, Martinů: Concerto For Two Pianos And Orchestra, © 2000 Élan Recordings