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Bedřich Smetana (2 March 1824 - 12 May 1884) was a renowned Czech composer, best known for his symphonic poem Vltava (The Moldau) and the opera Prodaná nevěsta (The Bartered Bride). Born in Litomyšl, Bohemia, Smetana was the son of a brewer and began studying piano and violin at an early age. He attended high school in Pilsen from 1840 to 1843 and later studied music in Prague, despite his father's initial resistance. He secured a position as a music master for a noble family and received funds from Franz Liszt to establish his own music school in 1848. The tragic loss of his second child in 1855 and a subsequent child's death led him to focus intensely on composition, resulting in the Piano Trio in G minor, which reflects his sorrow. In 1856, he moved to Gothenburg, Sweden, where he taught and conducted. After returning to Prague in 1863, he opened a music school dedicated to promoting Czech music. By 1874, Smetana had become deaf due to syphilis but continued to compose, including the works of Má vlast. He also suffered from tinnitus, which he described as a maddening high note. His autobiographical string quartet in E minor, Z mého života (From My Life), composed in 1876, features a high E in the first violin that represents

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