Songs from home: Magdalena Kožená in conversation

There is something so intimate about a mother tongue – not just because it is our very first family heirloom, as the word ‘mother’ suggests. But our first language has ramifications for everything we experience. Why else would we go back to it in the most emotional and personal moments, in love, anger, confession, and poetry?

If speaking our mother tongue helps us understand ourselves and our closest environment, singing in it is a more intricate matter, one that transcends our particular voice and connects us to others, who may be far away in time or space. I reflected on this – among other things – with Magdalena Kožená, recipient of the 2025 Antonín Dvořák Award, who in a brilliant career as a mezzo has developed a long-lasting relationship with the musical traditions of her native Czech Republic.

Read the full feature on Bachtrack.