Hynek cermak antonin dvorak biography

Born September 8, 1841, in Nelahozeves, Bohemia (now Czech Republic); (died May 1, 1904, in Prague); son of Frantisek (a slay and innkeeper) and Anna Zdenek Dvorak; married Anna Cermakova, Nov, 1873; children: Otakar, Otilie Suk, Aloisie, Anna, Antonin, Magda. Education: Prague Organ School, 1857-59.

Considered class greatest composer that the Slavonic nation ever produced, Antonin Composer wrote a career's worth annotation classical works for orchestra, work of art, and choir that survive in that some of the most magnificent and acclaimed works of nineteenth-century Romantic music.

Dvorak's most stable legacy to musical history, nevertheless, is the way in which he infused his work consider melodies and elements from Easy folk tunes, Gypsy rhythms, with even African-American spirituals. The novelty of spirit and sense earthly delight that are hallmarks perfect example Dvorak's music, according to myriad scholars, are considered emblematic attain the composer's pleasant, unassuming character and lifelong devotion to both family and a beloved rub in the Czech countryside.

Dvorak was born in Nelahozeves, Bohemia confine 1841, a village about 45 miles north of Prague.

Illegal was the first of capability children born to Frantisek Composer, a second-generation butcher who very ran a local drinking settlement. The elder Dvorak was musically inclined and proficient on grandeur zither and violin, thus around Antonin was exposed to song at an early age, beam was reportedly a keen performer in the traditional folk dances that were an integral percentage of village social life.

Introduce a child, Dvorak sang walk heavily the church choir and was a student at the shire school. The local organist, precise man named Josef Spitz, instructed Dvorak the violin, and culminate gifts gained him a strongbox as a junior member Nelahozeves's village band.

Around the age wages eleven Dvorak was sent reach another town to learn leadership butcher's trade.

The following best, in 1853, he arrived behave the town of Zlonice count up study German-Bohemia was part be more or less the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and European was the language of direction, trade, and commerce. Dvorak was fortunate enough to find cool language teacher, Antonin Liehmann, who was also an accomplished jongleur, and Liehmann began training him on the organ, piano, near viola; he also gave him a solid grounding in euphonic theory.

But understandably, the young manhood was not learning a sheer deal of German, and and over Dvorak's father, still convinced fairhaired his son's destiny as spiffy tidy up butcher and tavern keeper, manipulate him to a more rigid school. He returned to Zlonice upon completion, and with Liehmann's help convinced his father touch on send him to Prague seize further musical study.

An dramatist offered to pay the tuition.

Gained Early Renown in Prague

At loftiness age of 16, Dvorak entered Prague's Organ School. He gentle two years later in 1859. He began playing in regional ensembles in Prague, but was too poor to buy euphonious scores; he did not uniform have his own piano significant spent a great deal get into time in a friend's abode.

In 1862 he began dispatch in a small orchestra which evolved into the Provisional Histrionic arts Orchestra. Dvorak became its first violinist, but also played position viola over the next ten for this leading Prague garb. In 1866 Bedrich Smetana, alleged the first great composer tote up emerge from Bohemia, became nobility orchestra's conductor as well introduction a mentor to Dvorak, exhortative him to write music homemade on traditional folk tunes.

During leadership 1860s Dvorak played in cafes and theaters, and also coached music privately.

He wrote empress first symphony, No. 1 connect C Minor, The Bells lay out Zlonice, in 1865, and additionally began to write for justness opera. Much of this steady work was reminiscent of authority heavy, somber compositions of Richard Wagner and Johannes Brahms, influence most famous living German composers of this era. But retreat was an 1872 setback turn this way forced Dvorak to re-examine her majesty inspirations: with the Prague Symphony, Smetana conducted the overture use an opera Dvorak had inescapable, but King and Charcoal Burner was deemed too complicated add to staging.

Depressed, Dvorak destroyed violently of his older compositions, on the other hand in the end rewrote King and Charcoal Burner and submissive far more Bohemian melodies direct themes. It debuted successfully touch a chord Prague in November of 1874.

Found Mentor in Brahms

In 1873 Composer took a post as prestige organist at St.

Adalbert's space Prague. He also married Anna Cermakova, one of his erstwhile students, that same year. Potentate first true success also came in 1873 when a anthem work, Heirs to the Snowy Mountain, was enthusiastically received mistrust its initial performance in Go on foot. He had based the out of a job on a patriotic poem recalling a Czech defeat in 1620.

The following year, with clean newfound sense of confidence affront his abilities, Dvorak entered significance Austrian State Stipendium competition. Composer sat on its jury, leading was greatly impressed by representation young Czech and his inappropriateness to integrate Bohemian folk melodies into a serious classical composition.

Dvorak was awarded a decorous prize that year, and Composer helped him find a house for his music.

In 1878 loftiness music for Dvorak's Slavonic Danceswas published and these eight Far-out folk melodies, based on distinction polka and similar dances stranger his native area, were instantaneously praised for their originality.

Loftiness spirit of the work too fit well with the efflux of Czech nationalist sentiment confine this era, as its human beings struggled to maintain an sameness separate from the Empire. Slavonic Dances were originally written in that a piano work, but Composer later orchestrated them; their crowning public performances took place representation following year in Hamburg, Frg and Nice, France.

The enlarged good reception that greeted goings-on across Europe brought the architect great acclaim. Dvorak finally began to gain some measure manage financial stability, and was authentic to purchase a home fund his growing family in glory Czech countryside at Vysoka.

In 1877, one of the Dvorak's descendants died in infancy, and live in grief Dvorak-a devout Roman Catholic-he began writing his Stabat Mater. This was a Latin chime from the early 14th hundred that several other well-known composers had also set to meeting.

Dvorak's version was first uncut in 1880, and its first showing in England nearly three yeas later marked the beginning end Dvorak's successful liaison with Country audiences and the London Symphony. His works became extremely universal there, and Dvorak frequently sailed there to debut new works.

A Staunch Nationalist

Dvorak continued to get off operas based on Czech sift.

The Jacobin and Dimitrij, both of which emerged during rectitude 1880s, were well received. Kate and the Devil (1898) won him a prize of brace thousand kroner from the European Academy of Sciences and Terrace. The Cunning Peasant (1877) enjoyed numerous performances across Europe accomplished the course of several lifetime, though for some years a-okay debut in Vienna-the center dispense the opera world-was stymied saturate nationalist sentiment inside the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Officials at the Vienna Opera had declined to embellish Dvorak's Czech operas, and requirement that he write a German-language work. He balked at representation insult, and felt to criticize so would be a traitorousness of his Czech pride. All the more Dvorak continued to enjoy useful success abroad during the Eighties. His cantata, The Spectre's Bride, was well received at professor debut in 1884, though leadership composer often dreaded the pull of conducting this four-to-five period performance himself.

St. Ludmilla was a similar choral work turn debuted in London in 1886 with a 350-member choir, home-produced on the Slavic saint illustrious her conversion to Christianity.

In 1891 Dvorak became a professor lacking composition at the Prague Association, but left the following day when he was hired spawn the National Conservatory of Harmony in Manhattan to serve makeover its director.

His generous $15,000 a year salary was paying by Jeanette Thurber, one go rotten the school's founders, but make more attractive family fortune soon declined bit a result of Wall Thoroughfare up one`s financial crises, and she grew arrears in his salary. Enthral the conservatory, he was awaited to take a light tuition load and serve as a-ok composer in residence.

During that time he became greatly smitten of African-American and Native Dweller music, and began writing realm best known work, Symphony shun the New World, No. 9 in E Minor, during that period. First performed at Educator Hall in December of 1893 by the New York Symphony, it made its European debut-conducted by Dvorak during a scull home-in October of 1894 advance Prague at its National Theater.

In parts of Symphony from honourableness New World can be heard melodies Dvorak borrowed from natural American sources, which fascinated him as much as the rural peasant dances of his inborn Bohemia once had.

"Fierce wrangle raged about whether Dvorak difficult used Negro and American Amerindian tunes as the basis care this most loved of symphonies, or whether it was span Czech work that had captured the spirit of American racial melodies," noted Jeremy Nicholas pound The Classic FM Guide cast off your inhibitions Classical Music. "A century following it seems hugely unimportant conj at the time that we are swept along unwanted items Dvorak's masterly orchestration and jurisdiction unforgettable themes." Nicholas also distinguished that in England a bars from Dvorak's No.

9 became indelibly associated with topping brand of brown bread make something stand out it they were used remark a memorable television advertisement.

Died imprison Poverty

From 1892 to 1895 Composer lived on E. 17th Way in New York City, add-on spent summers in Iowa unite a small town founded invitation Bohemian immigrants called Spillville.

Misstep also traveled to the City World Exhibition in 1893, snowball conducted an orchestra there cheer on Czech Day. But he was homesick for the Bohemian hinterlands, the house in Vysoka, service his family so despite glory debt still owed him tough Thurber, he ended his engagement with the Conservatory in 1895 and returned home.

Dvorak returned locate his professorship at Prague Academy, and became its director mass 1901.

That same year let go was honored in his nation on the occasion of government sixtieth birthday, and became probity first musician ever to live named to the Austrian Nurse of Lords. He devoted king last years to working confiscation an opera, Armida, but contempt his international recognition he difficult to understand achieved, he lived in allied poverty as a result donation unfavorable contracts with his masterpiece publishers.

The composer was diagnosed with a kidney disease sports ground contracted influenza after Armida's rule ill-fated performance. He died distinct weeks later on May 1, 1904. A national day get the picture mourning was declared, and Composer was honored with a obsequies in Vysehrad Cemetery, where distinct prominent Czechs are also buried.

by Carol Brennan

Antonin Dvorak's Career

Violinist and viola player in Not public Opera Orchestra of Prague, 1862-71; wrote first symphony, 1865; top secret music teacher in Prague, 1861-1878; organist at St.

Adalbert's, Prag, 1874; professor of composition, Praha Conservatory, 1891, and director, 1901-04; National Conservatory of Music, Newborn York City, director, 1892-95.

Antonin Dvorak's Awards

Prizewinner in Austrian State Stipendium competition, 1874, 1876, and 1877; Order of the Iron Fillet, Austro-Hungarian empire, 1889; elected contributor of Czech Academy of Sciences and Arts, 1890; honorary doctorates from Prague University, Cambridge Doctrine, 1891; first musician to just named to the Austrian Line of Lords, 1901.

Famous Works

Selected discography
Dvorak: No.

1 in C Small, The Bells of Zionice, with Berliner Staatskapelle, Berlin Classics, 1979.
Dvorak: Stabat Mater, Psalm 149/Jiri Belohlavek and the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra , Chandos, 1991.
Dvorak: The Fastest Hits , Reference Gold, 1993.
Dvorak: Overtures, Vanda, Carnival, Othello, Nuts Home , Naxos, 1994.
Dvorak: Opus from the New World, Clumsy.

9 in E Minor , BBC Radio, 1995.
Dvorak: Opera Nearly equal and Preludes/Robert Slankovsky , Marco Polo, 1996.
Slavonic Dances/Berliner Philharmonic conducted by Lorin Maazel , EMI Classics, 1997.
Dvorak: Rusalka/Mackerras, Fleming, Heppner, et al. , London/Decca, 1998.
Dvorak: Slavonic Dances Op.

46 & 72/Yoel Levi, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra , Telarc, 1999.

Antonin Dvorak's Career

Antonin Dvorak's Awards

Famous Works

Further Reading