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Celebrating Antonin Dvorak's 180th Birthday

  • Stuyvesant Square Park 9 Rutherford Place New York, NY, 10003 United States (map)
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A festive open-air concert and walking tour celebrating the 180th anniversary of Antonin Dvorak’s birth on September 8, 1841.

AT 1:00 PM, WALKING TOUR

Tour the East 17th Street neighborhood where Czech composer Antonin Dvorak resided from 1892-95 while the director of the National Conservatory of Music of America. It is here in New York that he composed the world-famous “New World” Symphony, Sonatina for Violin and Piano Op. 100, Biblical Songs, the best known Humoresques, and incomparable Cello Concerto. 

Tour leaders include cultural historian Majda Kallab Whitaker of the Dvorak American Heritage Association and author Jean E. Snyder of The Harry T. Burleigh Society.  

SOLD-OUT. We regret to inform you that the in-person walking tour has been sold out. Concert attendees will receive a self-guided tour handout for tracing Dvorak’s footsteps on their own.

AT 2:00 PM, CONCERT

Attend a festive open-air performance of Antonin Dvorak’s Serenade in D minor for Winds, Violoncello, and Contrabass, Op. 44. The concert – performed by the Metamorphosis Chamber Orchestra – will be held near the Dvorak Statue in the northeast corner of Stuyvesant Square Park. 

The Metamorphosis Chamber Orchestra will be conducted by Carl C. Bettendorf

DAHA President and Founding Member Susan Lucak will open the program with remarks about Dvorak’s New York home and American legacy. 

Free and open to the public. No RSVP is required.

AT 3:00 PM, PARTNER EVENT

St. George’s Episcopal Church and The Harry T. Burleigh Society invite the community to a Street Co-Naming Ceremony in honor of African American composer, baritone soloist, and chorister Harry T. Burleigh at 16th Street and 3rd Avenue. The ceremony will be followed by a program in St. George’s Church, where Burleigh, who was befriended by Dvořák, sang in the choir for 52 years. This event commemorates the life of Harry T. Burleigh, who died on September 12, 1949.

Meet at the corner of East 16th Street and Third Avenue.

IN CASE OF RAIN, 1:00 PM AT THE BOHEMIAN NATIONAL HALL

In case of rain, the DAHA concert will be held indoors at 1:00 p.m. in the Bohemian National Hall, 321 East 73rd Street, and the walking tour will be cancelled. 

Please note the earlier start time of DAHA’s rain-day indoor concert, allowing participants to attend the Harry T. Burleigh Street Co-naming Ceremony and program downtown at 3:00 p.m.

The venue shall be confirmed on Friday, September 10, and announcement posted on DAHA’s website: www.dvoraknyc.org.

DAHA adheres to all current admission policies regarding COVID-19. Proof of vaccination is required and masks strongly recommended for indoor events. For outdoor events, DAHA requests masking and social distancing from the speakers and each other.

This even is organized by the Dvorak American Heritage Association (DAHA), with support of BBLA.

Earlier Event: September 11
Jiri Boudnik: Towers – 9/11 Story
Later Event: September 23
2021 Annual Gala: The Play's the Thing