Phonograph Monthly Review, Vol. 1, No. 8 (1927-05)

The Phonograph Monthly Review LILLI—£-! ■ _! 1 ! ! ■ — - ■ === ‘ - Bohemian University in Prague followed with the honorary title of doctor of philosophy, and the government of Austria with the elevation to the Austrian House of Peers. In 1892 Dvorak came to America. He was called to New York as director of the National Conservatory of Music for three years, at a salary of $15,000 a year, a sum undreamed of by Euro- pean composers of those days. He arrived on September 26, and on October 21, 1892, the first concert to his honor was given at the Music Hall in New York. Dvorak conducted personally his three ouvertures “Nature, Love, Life” (today known under the names “In the Nature,” “Cthello” and “Carneval”) and his “Te Deum.” “Morning, December 19, 1892” is the date of the first sketch in Dvorak's sketchbook for the symphony “From the New World.” Dvorak dated carefully all his sketches and compositions, and therefore we know perfectly when they were begun and finished. The complete sketch was made from January 10 to May 12, 1893, the full score was finished as follows: the first movement February 28, the second March 14, the third April 10 and the fourth May 24, 1893, all in New York. As to the well known controversy whether this work was inspired by America or not, and whether Dvorak used any American aboriginal and Negro themes, Dvorak himself is the judge. He wrote to Dr. Emil Kozanek in Olomouc, Moravia, under the date of September 15, 1893: “I know that my new symphony and the string quartet in F major and the quintet would never have been so written if I had not seen America.” And in March, 1900, he wrote to Nedbal when this conductor was to perform his New World Symphony in Berlin: “I send you Kretschmar's analytical booklet, but please omit the nonsense that I have used Indian and American motives, because it is a lie. I tried only to write in the spirit of American folk melodies.” The unri- valed popularity of this symphony in America proves that he succeeded. The Symphony No. 5, E minor or “From the New World” was given its first performance in New York, by the Philhar- monic Society, with Anton Seidl conducting and Dvorak present. The other American compositions were written partly in New York, partly at Spillville, Iowa, where Dvorak spent his summer vacations in 1893 with his family among the Bohemian popu- lation of that village. To these American com- positions—besides the Symphony op. 95—belong the following works: String Quartet F major, op. 96 (June, 1893, Spillville), Quintet E flat major, op. 97 (July, August, 1893, Spillville), cantata “The American Banner,” Suite for piano, op. 98 (February, 1894, New York), “Biblical Songs,” op. 99 (March, 1894, New York), Sonatina G major for violin and piano, op. 100 (November, 1893, ceaicated to Dvorak's children Otylia and Antonin who were with their father in New York,—Otylia became later the wife of the Bo- hemian composer Josef Suk, but she died too early), “Humoresky” for piano, op. 101 (the seventh of these eight small compositions is the 331 world famous “Humoresque”), “Berceuse” and Concerto for Violoncello, op. 104. After his return to Bohemia, Dvorak became again professor of composition at the Conserva- tory of Prague which elected him to the office of director in 1901. He remained at this post until his death on May 1, 1904. His bequest contains more than 120 works. Among them are seven symphonies, several sym- phonic poems, symphonic ouvertures, 30 chamber music works, concertos for violin, violoncello, pianoforte works (some of them were later ar- ranged for the orchestra by Dvorak himself, like “Slavonic Dances” and “Legends,”—Brahms es- teemed his brilliant art of orchestration so highly that he asked him to orchestrate his “Hungarian Dances”), songs, choruses, cantatas, oratorios, operas the best of which are “Rusalka” (The Water Nymph), “Jakobin” (The Jacobin), “Dimitrij” (its story begins where Moussorgski's “Boris Godunov” ends), etc. Characteristic rhythms and charming harmonic effects as well as bright and glittering instrumentation are sig- nificant of the works of Dvorak who was one of the most original composers of the world in the realm of absolute music. In private life Dvorak remained a plain man till his death. He is the only Bohemian composer from whose life hundreds and hundreds of anec- dotes are related. I will mention only three of them. His was a simple, deep faith, free from dog- matical shade. Once when he returned from a visit to Brahms whom he adored, he was very sad. Asked why, he replied: “Don't you under- stand? Brahms, such a big and dear man,—and he believes in nothing, absolutely in nothing!” When a critic asked him what his relations to Tchaikowski were, he said: “That's simple! I don't like Tchaikowski's music, and Tchaikowski does not like my music!” And in connection with the present Beethoven memorial days: On one occasion his admirers gave him a big wreath with a ribbon which bore the inscription: “To the greatest genius!” He took it home and hung it—around Beethoven's portrait Dvorak did not write any articles for musical magazines. But there is a remarkable article, today entirely forgotten, which you can find in the “Harper's New Monthly Magazine,” vol. XC, No. 537, pp. 429-434. The title is “Music in America by Antonin Dvorak.” The footnote says: “The author acknowledges the co-operation of Mr. Edwin Emerson, Jr., in the preparation of this article.” When sixteen years ago I trans- lated this article into Bohemian and printed it in the “Hudebni Revue” (Musical Review, Prague), all Dvorak experts agreed that there was no doubt about Dvorak's authorship of this article. The form belongs to the American essayist, but the contents show clearly the ideas of Dvorak well known to all who were his intimate friends. The translation was sincerely greeted in Prague, because Dvorak's written statements about mu- sical and esthetic matters are very rare. The