Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904) composed his Symphony No. 9 in E Minor, Op. 95 (“From the New World”) in 1893, while director of the National Conservatory of Music in NYC. The 1st mvmt begins peacefully and moves to a spirited tuneful allegro, including a theme with a strong folk flavor. The 2nd mvmt sounds like an African American spiritual, tho’ the theme is Dvorak’s. The 3rd mvmt is a vigorous scherzo with undertones of Bohemia. The last mvmt begins and ends dramatically, the first theme sounding almost martial, the middle theme bucolic. Bedrich Smetana (1824-1884), often called the father of Czech music, composed his Ma Vlast, a cycle of six symphonic poems, between 1872 and 1879. The 2nd tone poem, The Moldau, depicts the mighty river that is the country’s backbone, as it flows through varied geography to the sea. The 4th tone poem, From Bohemia’s Fields and Groves depicts a middle-European rural, often pastoral feeling, with peasant merrymaking. Hungarian-born conductor George Szell was a child prodigy pianist and composer, before becoming a world-famous conductor. Czech conductor Rafael Kubelik first conducted the Czech Philharmonic before age 20, later becoming famous as conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. These historic recordings (1937) showcase these conductors early in their careers, before World War II.

Dvorak, Symphony No. 9, 1st Mvmt: Adagio – Allegro Molto (8:30)
Dvorak, Symphony No. 9, 2nd Mvmt: Largo (11:31)
Dvorak, Symphony No. 9, 3rd Mvmt: Scherzo (7:51)
Dvorak, Symphony No. 9, 4th Mvmt: Allegro Con Fuoco (10:30)
Smetana, The Moldau: (12:11)
Smetana, From Bohemia’s Fields and Groves: (12:44)