Great Composers in Words & Music: Antonín Dvořák
Gerd Albrecht, Czech Philharmonic, WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln, WDR Rundfunkchor Köln, Fine Arts Quartet, Joachim Trio, Orfeón Pamplonés, Orquesta Sinfónica de Navarra, Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Prague Chamber Choir, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, Slovak State Philharmonic, Košice, The Washington Orchestra, Alon Goldstein (Piano), Amit Peled (Violoncello), Dalibor Jenis (Baritone), Hana Dobešová (Mezzo-soprano), Ilya Kaler (Violin), Iwona Sakowicz (Mezzo-soprano), Ladislava Vondráčková (Piano), Manuel Lange (Piano), Maria Kliegel (Violoncello), Michaela Rózsa Růžičková (Soprano), Michelle Breedt (Mezzo-soprano), Nicholas Boulton (Speaker), Peter Frisée (Organ), Peter Mikuláš (Bass), Roman Janál (Bass), Ralph Evans (Violin), Efim Boico (Violin), Gil Sharon (Viola), Niklas Schmidt (Violoncello), Rebecca Hirsch (Violin), Caroline Dearnley (Violoncello), John Lenehan (Piano)
℗ 2023
- 00:08Introduction
- 01:16Slavonic Dances op. 72 B. 147 (Version for Orchestra): No. 1 in B major (Excerpt)
- 04:04Bits and pieces are all we may know about the music of Antonín Dvořák
- 01:32Biblical Songs op. 99 B. 185: No. 4 Hospodin jest můj pastýř (Excerpt)
- 02:57The fourth of Dvořák's Ten Biblical Songs, titled "The Lord is my shepherd" and set to a well-known Psalm text from the traditional Czech translation of the Kralice Bible
- 00:57Biblical Songs op. 99 B. 185: No. 6 Slyš, ó Bože, volání mé (Excerpt)
- 02:48Antonín Leopold Dvořák was born on 8 September 1841 in the village of Nelahozeves, near Kralupy, in Bohemia, approximately 28km north of Prague
- 00:38Symphony No. 6 in G major op. 116 "Historische Symphonie im Styl und Geschmack vier verschiedener Zeitabschnitte": IV. Allerneueste Periode, 1840. Allegro vivace (Excerpt)
- 02:31Reflecting on this period of the composer's life, Zubatý (the Czech writer mentioned previously) wrote
- 00:49Symphony No. 1 in C minor B. 9 "The Bells of Zlonice": II. Adagio molto (Excerpt)
- 01:34Dvořák's first symphony, composed between February and March 1865, began life as a submission to a German composition competition
- 01:48Symphony No. 1 in C minor B. 9 "The Bells of Zlonice": I. Maestoso - Allegro (Excerpt)
- 01:24In early 1865, Dvořák started teaching piano to the daughters of a Prague goldsmith: one of the two, Anna Čermáková would later become his wife
- 01:04String Quartet No. 4 in E minor B. 19: I. Assai con moto ed energico (Excerpt)
- 03:57Before he left the Provisional Theatre orchestra in the summer of 1871, Dvořák was the subject of an announcement in a leading local music journal
- 00:42Král a uhlíř, B. 21, Act I Scene 9: Jaký zvuk to jest? (Excerpt)
- 02:06It seems that Dvořák's revision of the opera between 1873 and 1874 was but part of a larger stylistic renovation being undertaken by the composer at the time
- 00:45Moravské dvojzpěvy op. 32 B. 62: No. 2, Veleť vtáčku (Excerpt)
- 02:16In response to Dvořák's multi-composition submission for the 1877 stipendium, Brahms singled out the Moravian Duets for special praise
- 00:54Slavonic Dances op. 46 B. 83: No. 1 in C Major (Excerpt)
- 02:47While this style of music might be regarded, somewhat cynically, as a kind of opportunistic "tourist nationalism" (to quote a recent historian), listeners in Dvořák's time thought the very opposite
- 00:58Piano Trio No. 3 in F minor op. 65 B. 130: I. Allegro ma non troppo (Excerpt)
- 01:22In August 1883, Dvořák received a prestigious invitation: the London Philharmonic Society requested his presence as conductor (of his own orchestral works) in their forthcoming concert season
- 00:53Stabat Mater op. 58 B. 71 (1876 Version): Stabat mater dolorosa (Excerpt)
- 03:13Dvořák left Prague for London on 5 March 1884: Eight days later he was conducting the Stabat Mater in the Royal Albert Hall
- 02:00Piano Trio No. 4 in E minor op. 90 B. 166 "Dumky": I. Lento maestoso - Allegro vivace, quasi doppio movimento - Tempo I (Excerpt)
- 03:20In 1891, the same year Dvořák completed the "Dumky" Trio, he took up the position of professor of composition and instrumentation at the Prague Conservatory
- 01:32Te Deum op. 103 B. 176: Te Deum laudamus (Excerpt)
- 03:11The premiere of the Te Deum within the celebratory concert, which took place on 21 October 1892 at New York's Carnegie Hall, was preceded by a concert address by the American musical patron
- 01:28Symphony No. 9 in E minor op. 95 B. 178 "From the New World": III. Scherzo. Molto vivace (Excerpt)
- 03:37Following the premiere of his Ninth Symphony, Dvořák may well have looked forward to a prosperous and productive period in New York
- 01:14Cello Concerto in B minor op. 104 B. 191: III. Finale. Andante - Allegro vivo (Excerpt)
- 02:59The next - and, indeed, the penultimate - phase in Dvořák's compositional journey seems to have emerged from his previous interest in music's extra-musical associations
- 01:38The Water Goblin op. 107 B. 195 (Excerpt)
- 03:50During his final years, Dvořák became the recipient of various honours
- 01:40Armida op. 115 B. 206, Act I Scene 1: Jak z dervišových prstů řinou (Excerpt)
- 02:33Dvořák is said to have departed the theatre early on the evening of 25 March 1904, during the premiere of Armida at the National Theatre in Prague
- 01:07Hymnus ad laudes in festo Sanctae Trinitatis B. 82 (Excerpt)
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