Your Top 5 Favorite Dvorak Works

[bhodges]

Definitely can't go wrong with most anything. I should include one of the quartets, but can't choose at the moment,  so:

Serenade for Strings
Slavonic Dances (all of them)
Symphony No. 6
Symphony No. 7
Symphony No. 8

--Bruce

[Brian]

Maybe we should do a Slavonic Dances poll!

(Op. 46 Nos. 3, 7 - Op. 72 Nos. 2, 5, 7)

[FelixSkodi]

1. Stabat Mater
2. The Jacobin (honestly the rest of this list would be his operas)
3. The Water Goblin (but all of The Erben Symphonic Poems)
4. Cypresses
5. Slavonic Dances

[amw]

Maybe we should do a Slavonic Dances poll!

(Op. 46 Nos. 3, 7 - Op. 72 Nos. 2, 5, 7)

Op. 46 Nos. 1, 3, 5 - Op. 72 Nos. 2, 4, 5. If you had to hold me to just one, Op. 46 No. 3.

(As ordered in the orchestral version.)

[Madiel]

Maybe we should do a Slavonic Dances poll!

(Op. 46 Nos. 3, 7 - Op. 72 Nos. 2, 5, 7)

Orchestra or piano?

[Florestan]

String Serenade
Slavonic Dances (all of them, orchestral)
Violin Concerto
Symphony No. 7 or 8 (pick your choice; going by the Scherzo alone, it's 7 for me)
Piano Quintet op. 81
American SQ

It's actually 6 but it could have easily been 10 or 15. 

[ChamberNut]

Pretty difficult task. Inspired by @hopefullytrusting

Currently, in no order are my 5:

String Quartet No. 10 in E flat, Op. 51
Serenade for Winds in D minor, Op. 44
Symphony No. 6 in D major, Op. 60
Symphony No. 8 in G major, Op. 88
String Quintet No. 2 in G major, Op. 77

[hopefullytrusting]

Pretty difficult task. Inspired by @hopefullytrusting

Currently, in no order are my 5:

String Quartet No. 10 in E flat, Op. 51
Serenade for Winds in D minor, Op. 44
Symphony No. 6 in D major, Op. 60
Symphony No. 8 in G major, Op. 88
String Quintet No. 2 in G major, Op. 77

My current, which will surely change tomorrow (and the day after, on and on) is:

String Quintet No. 2
Stabat Mater
A Hero's Song
String Quartet No. 14
Symphony No. 3

[kyjo]

My current, which will surely change tomorrow (and the day after, on and on) is:

String Quintet No. 2
Stabat Mater
A Hero's Song
String Quartet No. 14
Symphony No. 3

What a wonderfully unhackneyed list! My current list would look something like:

Cello Concerto (No. 2) in B minor
Piano Trio No. 4 in E minor Dumky
String Quartet No. 13 in G major
Symphony No. 7 in D minor
Vodník (The Water Goblin)

Honorable mentions: Symphonies Nos. 3 and 8, Piano Trio No. 3, Piano Quintet No. 2, String Quartet No. 14, Holoubek (The Wild Dove), Requiem, Rusalka, etc. etc.

In case it wasn't already apparent, I love Dvorak's music endlessly!

[LKB]

Hmmm...

I've played Symphony no.8 and the Cello Concerto, so I'll include those.

Symphonic Dances, the American String Quartet and Symphony No. 9 comprise the remainder.

[Madiel]

What's "symphonic dances"? Do you mean Slavonic?

[Christo]

Symphony No. 9 (also No. 1)
Serenade for winds
The Noon Witch
Ten Legends
Requiem

Orchestral only:

Symphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95  ('From the New World')
The Noon Witch, Op. 108
Scherzo capriccioso, Op. 66
Czech Suite, Op. 39
Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 3 ('The Bells of Zlonice')

[LKB]

What's "symphonic dances"? Do you mean Slavonic?

Oops... good catch, l was maybe thinking of Rachmaninoff. 

Slavonic Dances it is.

[Madiel]

Oops... good catch, l was maybe thinking of Rachmaninoff. 

Slavonic Dances it is.

Cool. I mean, I love the Symphonic Dances, just maybe not in this poll. 

[ChamberNut]

And there is the Slavonic Rhapsodies too, so I confuse those with the Dances.

[Cato]

The 4th is a wonderful work!

Well I'm also on record as a 4th fan.

For various and complicated reasons, the Symphony #4 is an all-around fave for me!

The Serenade for Strings is also at or near the top!


Has anyone mentioned the Stabat Mater ?


Jiri Belohavlek, Czech Philharmonic:

[André]

Favourite works that are NOT his symphonies:

- Requiem and Stabat Mater. I have trouble choosing one. They are like the same coin, with two faces: judgment and retribution on the one hand (Requiem), desolation followed by consolation on the other.

- American Quartet (op 96) and String Quintet op 97. Same comment: it's impossible to choose one above the other.

- Both Serenades - for strings and for winds. How could Dvorak do this ? Two winners in different disciplines - like floor gymnastics vs diving at the olympics.

- Slavonic Dances op. 46. Yup. Op 46 only. There are fine things in the op. 72 set, but I've always felt Dvorak's musical sap was diluted.

The Erben symphonic Poems, but especially The Water Goblin and The Noonday Witch.

Okay, that's 9 works in all but who cares ? 😆

[Cato]

- Slavonic Dances op. 46. Yup. Op 46 only. There are fine things in the op. 72 set, but I've always felt Dvorak's musical sap was diluted.

Yes, that has always been my feeling!  The second set is tamer, perhaps, still good, but not as visceral as the earlier group.

[71 dB]

There is no sense for me to list my top 5 since I know so little of his music, but I feel 2025 could a year to explore it more. I seem to be into his chamber music.