DVOŘÁK, A.: Great Composers in Words and Music

The music of Bohemian composer Antonín Dvořák is suffused with natural nobility, fluency and freshness, and embodies the spirit of his native land. This revealing biography portrays Dvořák as a complex and wide-ranging composer, and explores the creation and performance of his music as well as its reception on both sides of the Atlantic, tracing his art in all its richness and variety. Musical excerpts include the Cello Concerto, the ‘New World’ Symphony and the Slavonic Dances, as well as selected chamber pieces, songs, opera excerpts, and more.

Tracklist

Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
1Introduction00:08
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra)
Košler, Zdeněk (Conductor)
2Slavonic Dances, Series 2, Op. 72, B. 147: No. 1 in B Major (version for orchestra) (excerpt)01:16
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra)
Košler, Zdeněk (Conductor)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
3Bits and pieces are all we may know about the music of Antonín Dvořák04:04
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Bible - Old Testament - Lyricist
Sakowicz, Iwona (mezzo-soprano)
Lange, Manuel (piano)
410 Biblical Songs, Op. 99, B. 185: No. 4. Hospodin jest můj pastýř (The Lord is my shepherd) (excerpt)01:32
Sakowicz, Iwona (mezzo-soprano)
Lange, Manuel (piano)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
5The 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 Bible02:57
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Bible - Old Testament - Lyricist
Sakowicz, Iwona (mezzo-soprano)
Lange, Manuel (piano)
610 Biblical Songs, Op. 99, B. 185: No. 6. Slyš, ó Bože, volání mé (Hear my prayer, O Lord) (excerpt)00:57
Sakowicz, Iwona (mezzo-soprano)
Lange, Manuel (piano)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
7Antonín Leopold Dvořák was born on 8 September 1841 in the village of Nelahozeves, near Kralupy, in Bohemia, approximately 28km north of Prague02:48
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Spohr, Louis
Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra, Košice (Orchestra)
Walter, Alfred (Conductor)
8Symphony No. 6 in G Major, Op. 116, "Historische Symphonie im Styl und Geschmack vier verschiedener Zeitabschnitte": IV. Allerneueste Periode (1840): Allegro vivace (excerpt)00:38
Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra, Košice (Orchestra)
Walter, Alfred (Conductor)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
9Reflecting on this period of the composer's life, Zubatý (the Czech writer mentioned previously) wrote…02:30
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra)
Gunzenhauser, Stephen (Conductor)
10Symphony No. 1 in C Minor, B. 9, "The Bells of Zlonice": II. Adagio molto (excerpt)00:49
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra)
Gunzenhauser, Stephen (Conductor)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
11Dvořák's first symphony, composed between February and March 1865, began life as a submission to a German composition competition…01:34
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra)
Gunzenhauser, Stephen (Conductor)
12Symphony No. 1 in C Minor, B. 9, "The Bells of Zlonice": I. [Maestoso] - [Allegro] (excerpt)01:48
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra)
Gunzenhauser, Stephen (Conductor)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
13In early 1865, Dvořák started teaching piano to the daughters of a Prague goldsmith: one of the two, Anna Čermáková would later become his wife…01:24
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Fine Arts Quartet (Ensemble)
14String Quartet No. 4 in E Minor, B. 19: I. Assai con moto ed energico (excerpt)01:04
Fine Arts Quartet (Ensemble)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
15Before he left the Provisional Theatre orchestra in the summer of 1871, Dvořák was the subject of an announcement in a leading local music journal03:57
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Novotny, Vaclav Juda - Lyricist
Guldener, Bernard - Lyricist
Jenis, Dalibor (baritone)
Breedt, Michelle (mezzo-soprano)
Mikuláš, Peter (bass)
Prague Chamber Chorus (Choir)
Cologne West German Radio Chorus (Choir)
Cologne West German Radio Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra)
Albrecht, Gerd (Conductor)
16Král a uhlíř (King and Charcoal Burner), B. 21, Act I Scene 9: Jaký zvuk to jest? (What sound is that?) (excerpt)00:41
Jenis, Dalibor (baritone)
Breedt, Michelle (mezzo-soprano)
Mikuláš, Peter (bass)
Prague Chamber Chorus (Choir)
Cologne West German Radio Chorus (Choir)
Cologne West German Radio Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra)
Albrecht, Gerd (Conductor)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
17It 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 time02:06
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Traditional - Lyricist
Růžičková, Michaela Rózsa (soprano)
Dobešová, Hana (mezzo-soprano)
Vondráčková, Ladislava (piano)
18Moravské dvojzpěvy (Moravian Duets), Op. 32, B. 62: No. 2. Veleť vtáčku (Fly, Sweet Songster) (excerpt)00:45
Růžičková, Michaela Rózsa (soprano)
Dobešová, Hana (mezzo-soprano)
Vondráčková, Ladislava (piano)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
19In response to Dvořák's multi-composition submission for the 1877 stipendium, Brahms singled out the Moravian Duets for special praise02:16
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra)
Košler, Zdeněk (Conductor)
20Slavonic Dances, Series 1, Op. 46, B. 83: No. 1 in C Major (excerpt)00:54
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra)
Košler, Zdeněk (Conductor)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
21While 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…02:47
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Joachim Trio (Ensemble)
22Piano Trio No. 3 in F Minor, Op. 65, B. 130: I. Allegro ma non troppo (excerpt)00:58
Joachim Trio (Ensemble)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
23In 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 season01:22
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Washington Orchestra (Orchestra)
Shafer, Robert (Conductor)
24Stabat Mater, Op. 58, B. 71: Stabat mater dolorosa (original 1876 version) (version with orchestral accompaniment) (excerpt)00:53
Washington Orchestra (Orchestra)
Shafer, Robert (Conductor)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
25Dvořák left Prague for London on 5 March 1884: eight days later he was conducting the Stabat Mater in the Royal Albert Hall03:13
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Kaler, Ilya (violin)
Peled, Amit (cello)
Goldstein, Alon (piano)
26Piano Trio No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 90, B. 166, "Dumky": I. Lento maestoso - Allegro vivace, quasi doppio movimento - Tempo I (excerpt)02:00
Kaler, Ilya (violin)
Peled, Amit (cello)
Goldstein, Alon (piano)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
27In 1891, the same year Dvořák completed the 'Dumky' Trio, he took up the position of professor of composition and instrumentation at the Prague Conservatory03:20
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Orfeón Pamplonés (Choir)
Navarre Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra)
Wit, Antoni (Conductor)
28Te Deum, Op. 103, B. 176: Te Deum laudamus (excerpt)01:32
Orfeón Pamplonés (Choir)
Navarre Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra)
Wit, Antoni (Conductor)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
29The 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…03:11
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra)
Gunzenhauser, Stephen (Conductor)
30Symphony No. 9 in E Minor, Op. 95, B. 178, "From the New World": III. Scherzo: Molto vivace (excerpt)01:28
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra)
Gunzenhauser, Stephen (Conductor)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
31Following the premiere of his Ninth Symphony, Dvořák may well have looked forward to a prosperous and productive period in New York03:36
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Kliegel, Maria (cello)
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra)
Halász, Michael (Conductor)
32Cello Concerto in B Minor, Op. 104, B. 191: III. Finale: Andante - Allegro vivo (excerpt)01:14
Kliegel, Maria (cello)
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra)
Halász, Michael (Conductor)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
33The 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…02:59
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra)
Wit, Antoni (Conductor)
34The Water Goblin, Op. 107, B. 195 (excerpt)01:38
Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra)
Wit, Antoni (Conductor)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
35During his final years, Dvořák became the recipient of various honours…03:50
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Vrchlický, Jaroslav - Lyricist
Janál, Roman (bass)
Prague Chamber Chorus (Choir)
Czech Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra)
Albrecht, Gerd (Conductor)
36Armida, Op. 115, B. 206, Act I Scene 1: Jak z dervišových prstů řinou (As delightful rosary beads glide in the hands of the dervishes) (excerpt)01:40
Janál, Roman (bass)
Prague Chamber Chorus (Choir)
Czech Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra)
Albrecht, Gerd (Conductor)
Caddy, Davinia - Author
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
37Dvořák 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…02:33
Boulton, Nicholas (Reader)
Dvořák, Antonín
Sakowicz, Iwona (mezzo-soprano)
Frisée, Peter (organ)
38Hymnus ad laudes in festo Sanctae Trinitatis, B. 82 (excerpt)01:10
Sakowicz, Iwona (mezzo-soprano)
Frisée, Peter (organ)

Total Playing Time: 01:13:32