PROGRAM NOTES
DVOŘÁK CELLO CONCERTO remain — the violin . I have written a cello concerto , but am sorry to this day I did so , and I never intend to write another .” Dvořák was not alone in his reservations about the cello ’ s capacity to be a compelling solo instrument . Upon hearing Dvořák ’ s Cello Concerto for the first time , Johannes Brahms reportedly exclaimed “ If I had known that it was possible to compose such a concerto for the cello , I would have tried it myself !”
It was only after significant prodding from the Czech cellist Hanuš Wihan that Dvořák was even willing to write the Cello Concerto . However , Dvořák and Wihan then immediately engaged in several ongoing and contentious negotiations about revisions to the piece . Dvořák was so adamant about making sure that Wihan ’ s idea for an added cadenza was never realized in print that he wrote to his publishers demanding that the score not be altered in any way . Despite speculation that their disagreements over revisions may have resulted in Wihan not premiering the Cello Concerto in 1896 , it was actually a scheduling conflict that prevented Wihan from traveling to London for the piece ’ s premiere . The Cello Concerto was instead premiered by English cellist Leo Stern , who played the piece on Stradivarius ’ s 1684 “ General Kyd ” cello .
Dvořák started his career as a humble village fiddler and violist in the pit of the Prague Opera House , but when he wrote the Cello Concerto , he had reached the height of his international fame . At the time , Dvořák was serving as the Director of the National Conservatory in New York City , which had been founded by the innovative Jeannette Meyers Thurber in 1885 . It was during his time in New York City that Dvořák was introduced to African American spirituals and plantation songs by his student assistant Harry Thacker Burleigh . Dvořák ’ s Symphony No . 9 “ From the New World ” draws heavily on American musics and was premiered just a year before the Cello Concerto . Unlike Symphony No . 9 , however , the Cello Concerto does not draw on any specifically American musical elements .
The Cello Concerto is a cyclic composition , which means that thematic elements from the first movement occur in subsequent movements . The first theme , for example , is restated at important structural moments throughout the first movement , and it also reappears near the end of the third movement . The two primary themes in the first movement are introduced softly , the first being presented by the clarinets and the second by a solo horn . When the cello soloist enters , the first theme is stated in the parallel key of B major and is immediately followed by virtuosic triple stops ( chords with three notes played simultaneously ). This first solo entrance is quite grand and is meant to sound improvisatory . The coda is again a flash of showmanship for the cellist , with double stops , octaves , and notes in the highest register of the instrument .
The lyrical slow movement is full of exquisite phrases , gentle rubato , and touching nuance . Near the end of the movement , there is a unique cadenza-like section featuring the cello soloist accompanied by flutes and pizzicato strings . The movement closes with the cello soloist playing almost imperceptibly soft harmonics , which are high-pitched tones created by lightly touching the string to isolate overtones . The third movement is a rondo , with statements of the first theme regularly alternating with contrasting themes . A slow , wistful section near the end of the movement quotes Dvořák ’ s song “ Leave Me Alone ,” which was beloved by his sister-inlaw Josefina Kaunitzova ’ s . Just before he began writing the Cello Concerto , Kaunitzova wrote Dvořák a letter informing him that she was seriously ill , and the movement is thought to be a tribute to her .
Instrumentation Two flutes including piccolo , two oboes , two clarinets , two bassoons , three horns , two trumpets , three trombones , tuba , timpani , percussion , and strings .
Musical Term Mesostic : a poem or other text arranged so that a vertical phrase intersects lines of horizontal text . Palindromic : a word , sentence , verse , or even number that reads the same backward or forward . Coda : A concluding section , typically extensions of the main themes . Rubato : the temporary disregarding of strict tempo to allow an expressive quickening or slackening , usually without altering the overall pace . Cadenza : a virtuoso solo passage inserted into a movement in a concerto or other work , typically near the end .
Maximilian Franz
JAN-FEB 2023 / OVERTURE 31