Of Martinů's works for voice and piano the best known are indisputably New Chap-Book, H 288, Songs on One Page, H 294, and Songs on Two Pages H 302. All of these are settings of folk poems, but it would be a mistake to think that Martinů chose only this type of text for his songs. Before moving to Paris he set to music texts by Czech and German poets of the nineteenth century - Josef Václav Sládek, Adolf Heyduk, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Heinrich Heine, and Detlef von Liliencron. After 1923 he inclined toward poets from France: Guillaume Apollinaire, Jean Aicard, and Ferdinand de Gramont. Altogether his compositions for voice and piano span a period of more than thirty years with interruptions: his first song is from 1910, and the Songs on Two Pages close this genre in his output in 1944. Most of his nearly one hundred songs for voice and piano, however, come from the time of his youth, and some still show signs of compositional immaturity. They were written for special purposes, in association with his amorous passions or as gifts for close friends.
The Two Ballads, H 228, to folk poems were composed in 1932 for Olga Borová-Valoušková, who had enchanted Martinů in Smetana operas at the National Theatre already in 1910. Via dedications of a total of twelve songs on various texts, Martinů probably wished to open his way to this singer's heart. These Two Ballads can be ranked with the three well-known cycles New Chap-Book, H 288, Songs on One Page, H 294, and Songs on Two Pages H 302: their music shows Martinů's special sensitivity for the balladic content of the text, and we can recognize here the musical language of his masterful last cycles. Unfortunately, these two songs from 1932 have often been overlooked.
Programme of the Bohuslav Martinů Festival's concert, December 8, 2004