The Martinů Quartet from Prague performs Dvorak’s “American” String Quartet at Bohemian National Hall, 2018.
Watch the brilliant Martinu Quartet from Prague performing Antonin Dvorak’s “American” String Quartet, composed during his idyllic midwestern sojourn in the summer of 1893.
Originally performed on September 23, 2018 at Bohemian National Hall in Manhattan, this event was the third annual concert in the continuing series of Dvorak’s complete chamber works organized by the Dvorak American Heritage Association (DAHA). In the Grand Ballroom of the historic Bohemian National Hall, the renowned musicians and their audience enjoyed the enhanced acoustics and intimacy created by a central seating arrangement.
Biography
Acclaimed by audiences around the world, the Martinu Quartet appears regularly at the Prague Spring Festival as well as concerts in many European countries, the United States, Canada and Japan. Formed in 1976 at the Prague Conservatory, the chamber music group (formerly Havlak Quartet) has earned prizes at the ARD Munich, Evian, Yehudi Menuhin, and Prague Spring competitions.
Martinu Quartet
Lubomir Havlak, 1st violin
Libor Kanka, 2nd violin
Zbynek Padourek, viola
Jitka Vlasankova, cello
Program Notes:
String Quartet No. 12 in F Major Opus 96, the “American”
Allegro ma non troppo
Lento
Molto vivace
Finale: vivace ma non troppo
Antonin Dvorak composed the String Quartet No. 12 in F Major Opus 96, the “American” during a summer vacation while director (1892–1895) of the National Conservatory of Music of America in New York City. He spent his vacation in the town of Spillville, Iowa, which was home to a Czech immigrant community. Dvorak had come to Spillville at the suggestion of Josef Kovarik, a young Czech-American who had finished violin studies at the Prague Conservatory and was about to return to Spillville, his home in the United States, when Dvorak offered him a position as secretary. Kovarik accepted the job and told Dvorak about Spillville, where his father Jan was a schoolmaster, which led to Dvorak’s decision to spend the summer of 1893 there. In that environment, and surrounded by nature, Dvorak felt very much at ease. Writing to a friend he described his state of mind, away from hectic New York: "I have been on vacation since 3 June here in the Czech village of Spillville and I won’t be returning to New York until the latter half of September. The children arrived safely from Europe and we’re all happy together. We like it very much here and, thank God, I am working hard and I’m healthy and in good spirits."
In the “American” String Quartet, Dvorak utilizes compositional elements such as pentatonic scales, melodic shapes inspired by bird calls, and rhythms inspired by the music of the Native Americans, which give this piece a distinctly American sound. The sketch for the work was completed in record time of just three days and the actual score in nine days. Though seemingly effortless, the composition took great skill and creative effort. In the Scherzo one hears the song of a bird Dvorak had not known before - The Scarlet Tanager. The Finale suggests a country Sunday, with village dance and sounds of a church organ, which Dvorak himself liked to play.
The event was organized by Laura Jean Goldberg, violinist and DAHA Board Member, with support of BBLA.