PROGRAM NOTES

ANTONÍN DVOŘÁK Symphony No. 7

Composer: born September 8, 1841, Nelahozeves, near Kralupy (now the Czech Republic); died May 1, 1904, Prague.

Work composed: December 13, 1884 – March 17, 1885 in Prague; commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Society in London. Dvořák revised the second movement, shortening it, after the premiere. The revised version, heard today, was first performed on November 29, 1885, in Prague’s Rudolfinum Concert Hall.

World premiere: Dvořák conducted the London Philharmonic Society at St. James’ Hall in London on April 22, 1885.

Some artists create their best works under stress. In 1884, Antonín Dvořák, feeling pressure on both personal and professional fronts, managed to write what many have called his greatest symphony, outshining even the “New World.”

Late in 1882, Dvořák’s mother Anna died. Dvořák, who had been devoted to her, was devastated by the loss. In addition, he was also saddened by the plight of his countryman and colleague Bedřich Smetana, whose increasingly erratic behavior, caused by an advanced case of untreated syphilis, led to a mental collapse in 1884; Smetana subsequently died in a lunatic asylum. Professionally, Dvořák was under pressure of a happier, though no less stressful, kind. The Royal Philharmonic Society of London bestowed an honorary membership on Dvořák, which included a commission to write and conduct a new symphony.

“Now I am occupied by my new symphony for London, and wherever I go I have nothing else in mind but my work, which must be such as to make a stir in the world and God grant that it may!” wrote Dvořák to his friend, Judge Antonín Rus. The expectations Dvořák laid on his own shoulders, to write a symphony that would “make a stir,” were specifically inspired by Johannes Brahms’ Third Symphony. Dvořák had recently heard it performed in Berlin, and wanted to write a symphony of his own that would measure up to Brahms’. Brahms was both friend and mentor to Dvořák, and the Czech composer wanted to match, if not exceed, Brahms’ expectations of him as a symphonist. In an 1885 letter to his publisher Fritz Simrock, Dvořák wrote, “I want to justify Brahms’ words to me when he said, ‘I imagine your symphony will be quite unlike this one [the Symphony No. 6].’ There shall be no grounds for thinking he was wrong.”

The public eagerly awaited Dvořák’s latest symphony, as did the musicians of the London Philharmonic; in fact, the orchestra began rehearsing the first movement before Dvořák had finished writing the last. Dvořák was gratified by the enthusiasm that greeted him and his symphony when he conducted the premiere in London. George Bernard Shaw praised the work, writing “The quick transitions from liveliness to mourning, the variety of rhythm and figure, the spirited movement, the occasional abrupt and melancholy pauses, and the characteristic harmonic progressions of Bohemian music are all coordinated … by Herr Dvořák with rare success.” However, Dvořák was even more pleased by the reception the symphony received when Hans von Bülow conducted it with the Berlin Philharmonic in 1889. Dvořák attached von Bülow’s picture to the title page of his manuscript and wrote beneath it, “Glory be to you! You brought this work to life!”

The late music critic and scholar Michael Steinberg described the opening theme as “dark, undercover, and determined,” and notes that the idea for it came to Dvořák, a lifelong train-spotter, on a train platform at the Prague Railroad Station. For the scherzo, Dvořák incorporated the rhythms of the Czech furiant, a fast-tempo dance. Overall, the music of Dvořák’s Symphony No. 7 displays a cohesion of theme and harmony that pays direct homage to Brahms. While there are no surviving documents indicating Brahms’ opinion of Dvořák’s Symphony No. 7, it is hard to imagine he would not have been pleased and impressed by this masterful opus.

© Elizabeth Schwartz 2023