Antonín Dvořák
Dvořák wrote in a variety of forms: his nine symphonies generally stick to classical models, but he also worked in the newly developed form of the symphonic poem.
After Bedřich Smetana, he was the second Czech composer to achieve worldwide recognition. Following Smetana’s nationalist example, Dvořák frequently employed aspects, specifically rhythms, of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia. Dvořák’s own style has been described as ‘the fullest recreation of a national idiom with that of the symphonic tradition, absorbing folk influences and finding effective ways of using them’.
Dvořák displayed his musical gifts at an early age, being an apt violin student from age six. The first public performances of his works were in Prague in 1872 and, with special success, in 1873, when he was age 31. Seeking recognition beyond the Prague area, he first submitted a score of his First Symphony to a prize competition in Germany, but he did not win, and the manuscript, not returned, was lost until rediscovered many decades later. Then in 1874 he first made a submission for the Austrian State Prize for Composition, including scores of two further symphonies and other works. Johannes Brahms, unbeknownst to Dvořák, was the leading member of the jury and was highly impressed. The prize was awarded to Dvořák in 1874 and again in 1876 and in 1877, when Brahms and the prominent critic Eduard Hanslick, also a member of the jury, made themselves known to him. Brahms recommended Dvořák to his publisher, Simrock, who soon afterward commissioned what became the Slavonic Dances, Op. 46. These were highly praised by the Berlin music critic Louis Ehlert in 1878, the sheet music (of the original piano 4-hands version) had excellent sales, and Dvořák’s international reputation, at last, was launched.
Dvořák’s first piece of a religious nature, his setting of Stabat Mater, was premiered in Prague in 1880. It was very successfully performed in London in 1883, leading to many other performances in the United Kingdom and the United States. In his career, Dvořák made nine invited visits to England, often conducting performances of his own works. His Seventh Symphony was written for London. Visiting Russia in March 1890, he conducted concerts of his own music in Moscow and Saint Petersburg. In 1891 Dvořák was appointed as a professor at the Prague Conservatory. From 1890 to 91, he wrote his Dumky Trio, one of his most successful chamber music pieces. In 1892, Dvořák moved to the United States and became the director of the National Conservatory of Music of America in New York City. While in the United States, Dvořák wrote his two most successful orchestral works. The Symphony From the New World spread his reputation worldwide. His Cello Concerto is one of the most highly regarded of all cello concerti. Also, he wrote his American String Quartet, his most appreciated piece of chamber music. But shortfalls in payment of his salary, along with increasing recognition in Europe and an onset of homesickness, led him to leave the United States in 1895 and return to Bohemia.
Dvořák’s nine operas other than his first, Alfred, have librettos in Czech and were intended to convey Czech national spirit, as were some of his choral works. By far the most successful of the operas is Rusalka. Among his smaller works, the seventh Humoresque and the song “Songs My Mother Taught Me” are also widely performed and recorded. He has been described as “arguably the most versatile… a composer of his time”.
Widely regarded as the most distinguished of Czech composers, Antonin Dvorák produced attractive and vigorous music possessed by clear formal outlines, melodies that are both memorable and spontaneous-sounding, and a colorful, effective instrumental sense. Dvorák is considered one of the major figures of nationalism, both proselytizing for and making actual use of folk influences, which he expertly combined with Classical forms in works of all genres. His symphonies are among his most widely appreciated works; Symphony No. 9 (“From the New World,” 1893) takes a place among the finest and most popular examples of symphonic literature. Similarly, his Cello Concerto (1894-1895) is one of the cornerstones of the repertory, providing the soloist an opportunity for virtuosic flair and soaring expressivity. Dvorák displayed special skill in writing for chamber ensembles, producing dozens of such works; among these, his 14 string quartets (1862-1895), the “American” Quintet (1893) and the “Dumky” Trio (1890-1891) are outstanding examples of their respective genres, overflowing with attractive folklike melodies set like jewels into the solid fixtures of Brahmsian absolute forms.
Dvorák’s “American” and “New World” works arose during the composer’s sojourn in the United States in the early 1890s; he was uneasy with American high society and retreated to a small, predominantly Czech town in Iowa for summer vacations during his stay. However, he did make the acquaintance of the pioneering African-American baritone H.T. Burleigh, who may have influenced the seemingly spiritual-like melodies in the “New World” symphony and other works; some claim that the similarity resulted instead from a natural affinity between African-American and Eastern European melodic structures.
By that time, Dvorák was among the most celebrated European composers, seen by many as the heir to Brahms, who had championed Dvorák during the younger composer’s long climb to the top. The son of a butcher and occasional zither player, Dvorák studied the organ in Prague as a young man and worked variously as a café violist and church organist during the 1860s and 1870s while creating a growing body of symphonies, chamber music, and Czech-language opera. For three years in the 1870s, he won a government grant (the Viennese critic Hanslick was among the judges) designed to help the careers of struggling young creative artists. Brahms gained for Dvorák a contract with his own publisher, Simrock, in 1877; the association proved a profitable one despite an initial controversy that flared when Dvorák insisted on including Czech-language work titles on the printed covers, a novelty in those musically German-dominated times. In the 1880s and 1890s, Dvorák’s reputation became international in scope thanks to a series of major masterpieces that included the Seventh, Eighth, and “New World” symphonies. At the end of his life he turned to opera once again; Rusalka, from 1901, incorporates Wagnerian influences into the musical telling of its legend-based story and remains the most frequently performed of the composer’s vocal works. Dvorák, a professor at Prague University from 1891 on, exerted a deep influence on Czech music of the twentieth century; among his students was Josef Suk, who also became his son-in-law.
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Symphony No. 1 in C minor, B. 9 (The Bells of Zlonice)
This was composed during February and March 1865. The work is written in the early Romantic style and was inspired by the works of Ludwig van Beethoven and Felix Mendelssohn. The work was lost shortly after its composition and did not come to light until 1923, almost 20 years after the composer’s death. It did not receive its first performance until 1936.
The work is in four movements:
Maestoso – Allegro (in C minor)
Adagio molto (in A♭ major)
Allegretto (Scherzo in C minor, Trio in E♭ major)
Finale (Allegro animato) (in C major)
In the video, the symphony is by Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Vladimir Valek.
Symphony No. 2 in B flat major, Op. 4, B. 12
This was composed between August and October 1865. Dvořák sent the score to be bound, but could not pay the binder, who then kept the score.
It had its world premiere, and its sole performance during the composer’s lifetime in March 1888 and was generally well received.
The work is in four movements:
00:00 Allegro con moto
13:11 Poco adagio
25:20 Scherzo. Allegro con brio
37:33 Finale. Allegro vivace
In the video, the symphony is performed by the Czech philharmonic orchestra conducted by Václav Neumann.
Symphony No. 3 in E? major, Op. 10, B. 34
This was composed probably in 1872, but possibly not scored until the following year. It was premiered by Prague Philharmonic Orchestra on March 29, 1874, conducted by Bedřich Smetana. It was a great moment for young Dvořák because it was his first big score played in public. You can hear in this symphony typical Dvořák’s melodies but also some inspiration from Liszt or Wagner (work with motives, harmonies).
The work, unlike his other symphonies, is in three movements:
00:00 Allegro moderato
11:33 Adagio molto, tempo di marcia
28:27 Finale. Allegro vivace
In the video, the symphony was performed by the Czech philharmonic orchestra conducted by Václav Neumann.
Symphony No. 4 in D minor, Op. 13, B. 41
This was composed between January and March 1874. It shows an influence of Wagner in its themes’ development, and even in its thematic material, i.e. the principal theme of the second movement is a near-quotation from Tannhauser, or the Trio section of the third movement includes a vivid reminder of a passage from the overture of Die Meistersinger. The influence of Brahms could also be heard.
The first performance took place on May 25, 1874, at the concert of the Academy Readers’ Society in Prague, and was conducted by Bedřich Smetana.
The work consists of four movements:
0:00 I. Allegro
12:46 II. Andante sostenuto e molto
24:04 III. Scherzo: Allegro feroce
30:27 IV. Finale: Allegro con brio
In the video, the symphony is performed by the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by István Kertész.
The Symphony No. 5 in F major, Op. 76, B. 54
This was composed in the summer months in June and July 1875. It is considered largely pastoral in style, similar to Symphony No. 6 which he wrote about five years later. The symphony was first performed four years after it was written, on March 25, 1879, at the Slav concert of the Academic Readers’ Association in the Prague Žofín concert hall, conducted by Adolf Čech.
The symphony is dedicated to Hans von Bülow, in gratitude for the conductor’s systematic championing of Dvořák’s orchestral works.
The work consists of four movements:
Allegro ma non troppo (in F major)
Andante con moto (in A minor)
Andante con moto, quasi l’istesso tempo — Allegro scherzando (scherzo in B♭ major, trio in D♭ major)
Finale: Allegro molto (in F major)
In the video, the symphony is performed by the Prague Radio Symphony orchestra conducted by Heiko Mathias Förster. The concert took place in Rudolfinum / Dvorak hall, Prague on 2 March 2015.
Symphony No. 6 in D major, Op. 60, B. 112
This was composed in 1880. It was originally published as Symphony No. 1 and is dedicated to Hans Richter, who was the conductor of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. It captures some of the Czech national styles within a standard Germanic classical-romantic form.
The symphony is written in four movements:
I Allegro non tanto (00:00)
II Adagio (13:10)
III Scherzo (Furiant), Presto (25:45)
IV Finale, Allegro con spirito (33:45)
In the video, the symphony is performed by Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra conducted by Andreas Delfs.
Symphony No. 7 in D minor, Op. 70, B. 141
This was completed on 17 March 1885 and first performed on 22 April 1885 at St James’s Hall in London. It was originally published as Symphony No. 2.
The 7th symphony represents Dvořák at his best – it is the most ambitious in structure, and the most consciously international in its message. The Dvořák specialist John Clapham writes that “without a doubt” the 7th “must surely be Dvořák’s greatest symphony,”
Compositional structure:
1. Allegro maestoso
2. Poco adagio in F major (10:41)
3. Scherzo: Vivace – Poco meno mosso (20:08)
4. Finale: Allegro (27:28)
In the video, the symphony is performed by the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by John Eliot Gardiner.
Symphony No. 8 in G major, Op. 88, B. 163
This symphony was composed in 1889 at Vysoká u Příbramě, Bohemia, on the occasion of Dvořák’s election to the Bohemian Academy of Science, Literature and Arts. Dvořák conducted the premiere in Prague on 2 February 1890. In contrast to other symphonies of both the composer and the period, the music is cheerful and optimistic.
The symphony is in four movements:
Allegro con brio (G major)
Adagio (C minor)
Allegretto grazioso – Molto vivace (G minor)
Allegro ma non troppo (G major)
In the video, the symphony is performed by the hr-Sinfonieorchester (Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra) conducted by Manfred Honeck at the Alte Oper in Frankfurt on March 27, 2015.
Symphony No. 9 in E minor, “From the New World,” Op. 95, B. 178
This symphony was composed in 1893 while Dvořák was the director of the National Conservatory of Music of America from 1892 to 1895. It is by far his most popular symphony, and one of the most popular of all symphonies.
The piece has four movements:
Adagio, 4/8 – Allegro molto, 2/4, E minor
Largo, common time, D-flat major, then later C-sharp minor
Scherzo: Molto vivace – Poco sostenuto, 3/4, E minor
Allegro con fuoco, common time, E minor, ends in E major
In the video, the symphony is played by the Danish National Symphony Orchestra (Danmarks Radio Symfoniorkestret) conducted by Joshua Weilerstein.
Cello Concerto in B minor, Op. 104, B. 191
This is the last solo concerto by Antonín Dvořák. It was written in 1894–1895 for his friend, the cellist Hanuš Wihan, but was premiered by the English cellist Leo Stern. The piece is scored for a full romantic orchestra and is in the standard three-movement concerto format:
Allegro (B minor then B major)
Adagio, ma non troppo (G major)
Finale: Allegro moderato – Andante – Allegro vivo (B minor then B major)
In the video cellist, Pablo Ferrández with Israel Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Vasily Petrenko plays the concerto. The concert took place in june 2018 in Tel Aviv. The encore is “the song of the birds” folk song made popular by Pablo Casals.
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Rusalka – Moon Song
Rusalka (Op. 114) was the ninth opera Dvořák composed. It is one of the most successful Czech operas and represents a cornerstone of the repertoire of Czech opera houses. A rusalka is a water sprite from Slavic mythology, usually inhabiting a lake or river.
Dvorak’s composition relies upon expansive arpeggiated chords to capture the fairy tale ambiance of Rusalka. The amicable old Spirit of the Lake, Jezibab, is enjoying the singing of the Wood Nymphs, when his daughter, Rusalka, sadly approaches him. She admits that she has fallen in love with a handsome prince. Yearning to know the bliss of union with him, she wishes to become human. Deeply saddened, the Spirit of the Lake consents to her request and leaves. All alone, Rusalka sings this magnificent aria and shares the secrets of her longing for the moon.
Lyrics (translation):
Silver moon upon the deep dark sky,
Through the vast night pierce your rays.
This sleeping world you wander by,
Smiling on man’s homes and ways.
Oh moon ere past you glide, tell me,
Tell me, oh where does my loved one bide?
Oh moon ere past you glide, tell me
Tell me, oh where does my loved one bide?
Tell him, oh tell him, my silver moon,
Mine are the arms that shall hold him,
That between waking and sleeping he may
Think of the love that enfolds him,
May between waking and sleeping
Think of the love that enfolds him.
Light his path far away, light his path,
Tell him, oh tell him who does for him stay!
Human soul, should it dream of me, Let my memory wakened be.
Moon, moon, oh do not wane, do not wane,
Moon, oh moon, do not wane…
In this live video, the song is performed by the extremely fine soprano Asmik Grigorian. The orchestra is conducted by Vytautas Lukočius.
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