Thirty years after having recorded Dvořák's complete Symphonies on Chandos, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and its laureate conductor Neeme Järvi tackle another romantic Czech composer: Julius Fučík, famous for his more than 400 polkas, marches, and waltzes, some of the best of which are featured here.

Fučík studied violin in his early years, switching later to the bassoon, with a subsidiary in percussion and timpani. Playing in Austrian regiments, he gained invaluable experience of writing for military band and became a very prolific composer of marches. The most famous of these is of course Entry of the Gladiators, completed in 1899 and performed throughout the world ever since.

Full of energetic, effervescent Bohemian crossrhythms, tuneful brass melodies (often now associated with a circus atmosphere), but also more lyrical expressions, this album is a festival in itself.

“Fučík. Like his best-known work, his very name provokes a smile. But who, on hearing his one big hit, could tell you anything about either? Entry of the Gladiators (originally Grande Marche chromatique) was completed on October 17, 1899, in Sarajevo of all places. Its inspiration was Quo vadis, an 1896 Roman romp by Henryk Sienkiewicz, the same novel that provided the storyline for the eponymous 1951 film starring Robert Taylor and Deborah Kerr. Neeme Järvi and the splendid RSNO restore some dignity to this unjustly maligned crowd-pleaser. Nicely crafted and highly enjoyable music, played with all the life and fizz it requires by Järvi and his Scottish-based colleagues.What he lacks in memorable melody he makes up for with swagger, immense charm and foot-tapping brio – and, my goodness, this career bandmaster certainly knew how to orchestrate. The sound picture is a Chandos spectacular.” Gramophone Magazine, Awards Issue 2015