I have just encountered this composer in a book by Colin Wilson, 'Super Consciousness', where he affirms the best way to describe human emotions is through music. I have searched for this composition 'Eternal Longing' today, and found a decent copy through Amazon. How wonderful to hear it befor the Cd arrives. I must admit that like Colin Wilson, I have just encountered my favorite composer!
I know this recording well. I bought the LP many years ago, just because I had never heard of Vitezslav Novak before, and felt like learning something new. It was one of my memorable investments, as I am a devoted Novakian. He and Josef Suk were both very great composers, and chronologically, they really do fill the gap between Janacek and Martinu.
Was surprised to not finding a single score by Novak when i visited Prague a Couple of years ago... I would've loved to study his scores, especially for this piece and his great May Symphony
Chronologically by the date of birth, they surely do; but in style, they rather fill the gap between Dvořák and Janáček because Janáček was completely out of his generation. He composed most of his mature works after the 60th year of his life, and in style, he belongs to the generation of composers born about twenty years after his birth.