Romantic composers tended to fall into two categories: those who accepted the more radical path of program music, and the more traditional composers, who adhered to classical ideals and forms. These latter composers usually expanded classical forms in some way. So while being traditionalists, they melded romantic elements into their works.
Almost all symphonic composers of the nineteenth century were aware that the shadow of Beethoven loomed large. Most were influenced by some aspect of his style, either his expansion of the orchestra, his use of expanded forms, or his treatment of the coda as a second development section. Two important composers who fell into this category were Franz Schubert, representing the early romantic era, and Johannes Brahms, representing the culmination of romanticism.
Another late romantic composer of importance was the Bohemian composer Antonín Dvorák. Born in a small village near Prague, he moved there as a teenager to study at the Prague Conservatory. Although he achieved some small recognition for his compositions in the early 1870s, it wasn’t until he received Brahm’s patronage that he achieved international fame. In 1878, Brahms persuaded a German music publisher to print two of the composer’s works, Moravian Duets and Slavonic Dances. The popularity of these works allowed Dvorák the opportunity to tour Europe conducting them. Soon thereafter, he obtained the position of professor of composition at the Prague Conservatory.
From 1892 until 1895, Dvorák was in the United States as director of the National Conservatory of Music in New York City. While there, a conservatory student introduced him to African American spirituals. He also became aware of and admired Native American music. His familiarity with this music led to the composition of his Symphony no. 9 in E minor (“From the New World”).
Dvorák returned to Prague in 1895 where, in 1901, he was named director of the Prague Conservatory. This was where he spent the rest of his life. He died in 1904 at the age of sixty-two.
QUESTIONS AND TOPICS
1. Although Dvorák is considered a traditionalist because of his adherence to classical forms, he also incorporated a distinctive Bohemian sound in his music. The “New World” symphony, although using themes based on American folk tunes, has a distinctive Czech nationalistic sound partly because of the minor key and partly through Dvorák’s handling of the thematic material.
2. Composers of the nineteenth century found it difficult not to emulate Beethoven in some way. Echoes of this great composer can be found in numerous symphonic works by composers ranging from Schumann and Mendelssohn to Dvorák and Mahler. Brahms spent many years before completing his first symphony because he wanted it to reach the level set by Beethoven.
3. The traditionalist composers, led by Brahms, felt pretty strongly that literature, the arts, and philosophy could not be fused in any significant way with music. They resisted the temptation to create program music. Other composers, led by Wagner and Berlioz, felt just as strongly that it could. A war of words ensued throughout the nineteenth century between these two camps, which supported their position in letters and articles printed in journals.
4. Although it is not mentioned in the text, while Dvorák was in the United States, he spent his summers in Spillville, Iowa, where there was a large Bohemian community. Throughout this region of the United States there are still remnants of this heritage. Many communities have Czech restaurants as well as folk festivals and other ethnic events on a regular basis.
FURTHER TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION
1. During the fourth movement of Dvorák’s Symphony no. 9 in E minor, the flutes reprise a theme from the second movement. Why would the composer do this? Is this a typical occurrence?
2. Ask your students if they can describe how each section of the sonata form begins. How does the composer provide signals for the listener that indicate something new is about to occur?
3. What inspired Dvorák to compose a symphony dedicated to the “New World”?