[2] References to village customs local to his birthplace would recur in works such as Kytice (Bouquet of Flowers) of 1937, the Zbojnické písně (Brigands songs) of 1957, and the four folk cantatas of 1955-59.
The Spectre's Bride (Svatebni Kosíle), a cantata for soprano, tenor, bass and mixed chorus, titled 'Ballad after K J Erben's poem' was originally the final part of Špalíček but was dropped from the ballet mainly since it made the performance too long.
[6] The first version lasts around two hours and 10 minutes, and requires double woodwind, two each horns, trumpets, trombones, timpani and percussion, piano, and strings.
[5] The revised version, made by the composer in 1940, premiered at the Národní divadlo in Prague on 2 April 1949, conducted by Václav Kašlík (1917-1989), lasts around 100 minutes, with extra wind and brass.
[4] Martinů's Nový Špalíček H.288 is not related to the ballet, being a song cycle set to Moravian folk poetry dating from 1942 for voice and piano.
The prize-winning 1947 animated puppet feature film by Jiří Trnka titled Špalíček is often translated as The Czech Year and consists of fairy-tales.
Act III opens with the legend of Dorothea of Caesarea where the girl is killed by a crowd, but the mood changes for Cinderella set in a Czech village, finishing with waltzes to be danced at her wedding.