Antonín Dvořák

Donald Macleod explores the life, music and perseverance of Antonín Dvořák.

Antonín Dvořák was no spring chicken when he found success as a composer. He was in his early thirties before he made his mark in his native Czech Republic, despite composing from a young age. Donald Macleod follows Dvořák as he attempts to win over successive audiences: from Prague to Vienna, England to America, before eventually returning to Prague and to the opera stage. Who did he need to impress in order to achieve the success he craved?

Donald Macleod introduces us to Dvořák as he struggles to carve his path as a composer. We’ll meet his influential friends who championed his work, including Brahms, the conductor Hans Richter and the virtuoso violinist Joseph Joachim. Dvořák’s ambition eventually took him to America, but as well as inspiring many of his best-known works, found him embroiled in arguments about the nature of American music and struggling with homesickness. Donald considers what drove Dvořák to tirelessly persevere, particularly with the operatic genre, when his other works were so well received by audiences at home and abroad.

Music featured: Slavonic Dances, Op 46 (Dumka) In Nature’s Realm, Op 91 Symphony No 3 in E flat major, Op 10 Písně Milostné, Op 83 Serenade, Op 44 Piano Trio in F minor, Op 65 Moravian Duets, Op 32 (How small the field of Slavíkov is & Water and Tears) Symphonic Variations, Op 78 String Quartet No 10 in E flat major, Op 51 Violin Concerto in A minor, Op 53 Czech Suite, Op 39 Stabat Mater, Op 58 Svatá Ludmila, Op 71 Symphony No 8 in G major, Op 88 Requiem, Op 89 (Hostias) Piano Trio in E minor, Op 90 (Dumky) Cello Concerto in B minor, Op 104 Violin Sonatina in G, Op 100 Biblical Songs, op 99 String Quartet No 12 in F major, Op 96 (American) Symphony No 9, Op 95 (From the New World) Vanda (Overture) The King and the Charcoal Burner (Act 11, scene 7) Dimitrij (Act 4, scene 3) The Noon Witch, Op 196 Rusalka (Act 3)

Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Cerian Arianrhod for BBC Wales

For full tracklistings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Antonín Dvořák https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0009zxh

And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z