Your Top 5 Favorite Dvorak Works

[Mirror Image]

Choose your 'Top 5 Favorite Dvorak Works'. I'm going to sit this one out as I'm only just becoming familiar with more of his music. Perhaps to add a bit more to this how about telling us your favorite performance of the works you select as well? Let's have some fun!

[Ken B]

piano quintet and 3 big quartets
New world

Some of us can stick to 5!

[Mirror Image]

piano quintet and 3 big quartets
New world

Some of us can stick to 5!

What are your favorite performances of these works?

[Sergeant Rock]

Sticking to orchestral works now. I may post a chamber list later.


Symphony No.7 D minor (Davis/LSO; Szell/Cleveland)

Symphony No.8 G major (Giulini/Chicago; Karajan/Vienna Phil)

Symphony No.4 D minor (Rowicki/LSO; Kertesz/LSO)

Othello Overture (Rowicki/LSO; Neumann/Czech Phil)

Cello Concerto (Maazel/Ma/Berlin Phil; Davis/Schiff/Concertgebouw)

Romance for Violin and Orchestra F minor (Honeck/Mutter/Berlin Phil)


Sorry, limited math skills 

Sarge

[Sergeant Rock]

New world

Magnificent symphony but unfortunately I overdosed on it (starting in high school where we played a band version of the last movement) and rarely feel the need or desire to listen to it nowadays. Sad really.

Sarge

[Mirror Image]

I was just listening to Othello several hours ago, Sarge. Very nice work indeed.

[Mirror Image]

Magnificent symphony but unfortunately I overdosed on it (starting in high school where we played a band version of the last movement) and rarely feel the need or desire to listen to it nowadays. Sad really.

Sarge

Thankfully, I didn't have that problem, but I've been spending more time with the earlier symphonies, which have proven to be quite good. I even like The Bells of Zionice, which gets dumped on a lot.

[Sergeant Rock]

I was just listening to Othello several hours ago, Sarge. Very nice work indeed.

Try to hear Rowicki. He raises the roof...unbelievably powerful performance.

Sarge

[Mirror Image]

Try to hear Rowicki. He raises the roof...unbelievably powerful performance.

Sarge

Decca seems to have two very good cycles: Kertesz and Rowicki. I'll have to give Rowicki a listen. Thanks.

[Ken B]

Thankfully, I didn't have that problem, but I've been spending more time with the earlier symphonies, which have proven to be quite good. I even like The Bellos of Zionice, which gets dumped on a lot.

I like that one too. Unusual but appealing melodies and sounds.

[Jo498]

- G major string quartet op.106 ((old) Vlach quartet/Supraphon)
- A flat major string quartet op.105 (not sure, Smetana/BBC has non-ideal sound, I have not heard a studio Smetana, the (younger) Vlach on Naxos is good, also the Janacek on DG (probably mono, though, and only in a box)
- Piano quintet op.81 (many, it is hard to ruin, Rubinstein/Guarneri is a nice one)
- 7th symphony (probably Kertesz, but I am not collecting the symphonies, so I have not many, except for #9)
- cello concerto (Fournier/Szell/DG)

honorable mention:

6th symphony
9th symphony
violin concerto (any Suk)
3rd piano trio (Suk trio)
2nd piano quintet op.87 (expanded Suk trio)

[The new erato]

- G major string quartet op.106 ((old) Vlach quartet/Supraphon)
- A flat major string quartet op.105 (not sure, Smetana/BBC has non-ideal sound, I have not heard a studio Smetana, the (younger) Vlach on Naxos is good, also the Janacek on DG (probably mono, though, and only in a box)
- Piano quintet op.81 (many, it is hard to ruin, Rubinstein/Guarneri is a nice one)
- 7th symphony (probably Kertesz, but I am not collecting the symphonies, so I have not many, except for #9)
- cello concerto (Fournier/Szell/DG)

honorable mention:

6th symphony
9th symphony
violin concerto (any Suk)
3rd piano trio (Suk trio)
2nd piano quintet op.87 (expanded Suk trio)

Good list, I heartily concur about the two string quartets, would possibly substitute the 3rd trio for the piano quintet. Then add the 8th symphony (such a wonderfully sunny work) and the cello concerto.

[amw]

Symphony 7 (D minor op. 70)
String Quartet 13 (G major op. 106)
Piano Quintet 2 (A major op. 81)
Scherzo capriccioso
Violin Concerto
String Quartet 10 (Eb major op. 51)

Romance for Violin & Orchestra is necessary somewhere, but I'm already over limit. If necessary, substitutions would include Symphony 8 or 6, Piano Trio 3 (F minor op. 65), Serenade for Strings, or possibly the Cello Concerto (No. 2).

[Jo498]

Admittedly I have not really heard any of Dvorak's operas (except a few excerpts from Rusalka) and while I have listened to each of the two large church pieces maybe once, I cannot claim that I really know them.

In any case, I think that three of the most famous Dvorak pieces are not really his best in the respective genres: The F major quartet "American", the 9th symphony and the Dumky trio. They are all very good and it is quite understandable that they became the most popular but they are really over-popular and assign many other worthy pieces to underserved (semi-)obscurity. (Although a few of the early string quartets largely deserve their obscurity... )

[Brian]

Random order:

String Quartet in G Op. 106 - truly symphonic in size/scale/dynamism, with a zillion great tunes and almost melodramatic turn-on-a-dime contrasts in mood. (I love contrast in my music.) Fave performance: Pavel Haas Quartet, who play the piece like they're on fire. The ladies of the Cecilia Quartet are great, too.

Symphony No. 8. Maaaaaybe my favorite post-Beethoven symphony. Not likely to be a MI favorite since it's overwhelmingly joyous, aside from that gorgeous slow movement...anyway, there's a place for joyous symphonies, and sometimes they don't get enough credit! Pulling off great happiness in art is an incredibly difficult trick. MI will get along best with No. 7, I bet, with its mad apocalyptic rush of a final movement. And if you had said Top Ten, that would be on here for sure! Fave performance: Otmar Suitner, end of story.

Te Deum. Speaking of joy - I've been shouting from the GMG rooftops about how much I love this piece for years now, and ain't stopping anytime soon. Under 20 minutes, concise, compact, hyper-energetic, perfect. Fave performance: there are no indisputably great ones, but the Supraphon blue box has a thoroughly acceptable one.

Possibilities for #4 and #5:
Symphonies 3 (Rowicki, Suitner, or Neumann) and 7 (Lenny, Kubelik, or M-W Chung); Violin Concerto (Suk or Mutter are best; Sporcl's a good runner-up); Cello Concerto (Fournier or Queyras); string quintet Op. 77; "Dumky" Trio; Wild Dove; Water Goblin; Noon-Day Witch; Golden Spinning Wheel (here Mackerras is triumphant); the BIS album of Christian Poltera playing various works for cello and piano.

Super-under-the-radar stealth contender: Humoresque No. 4. No, not that humoresque, but the one that seems to secretly hint that it knows what jazz is, and what jazz harmonies will be, and that it's heard the song "Jeepers Creepers":

http://www.youtube.com/v/lY_860uX8FI

Scherzo capriccioso

This is a really really interesting choice - a piece I've loved since teenagerhood and listen to regularly, but without much conscious thought about it. Some commentators have talked about the emotional ambiguity of its scenes - not sure if you'd care to elaborate on why you picked 'Scherzo capriccioso' but if you do, I'd read it!

[some guy]

Dvorak thought of himself as an opera composer.

We tend not to think of his operas at all, with the exception of some excerpts from Rusalka.

Rusalka is a stunner, to be sure. It and Dmitrij get a lot of air time on my stereo.

The five bagatelles get an unusually lot of time. Lovely little jewels.

I can never decide if I like the symphony # 6 more or 5, and fortunately for me, I don't have to. Why, I can listen to the other seven as well, any time I want.

The Symphonic Variations are pretty cool. And all the rest of the chamber music is pretty good. And all the rest of the operas, as well.

I used to think that the cello concerto was THE cello concerto. And then I heard Lutoslawski's.

And then I realized I could listen to any cello concerto by anyone at any time.

These things happen.

[Mirror just encouraged me to read Brian's post. Shoulda done that earlier. It would have reminded me of the two choral pieces I play almost as much as the five bagatelles, Stabat Mater and Requiem. Glorious music!]

[Mirror Image]

Very interesting list, Brian. Actually, you're quite off the mark about me not loving Symphony No. 8. I LOVE it! This idea of me not enjoying something because it's written in a more jovial nature is just preposterous. I love Nielsen...remember? Most of his music is life-affirming in this way. I love Grieg, too and he wrote some remarkable sunlit music. Something doesn't have to be imbued or shrouded in darkness for me to enjoy it. Good music is good music regardless of what kind of emotional state is being conveyed to the listener.

On a side note, so far I've heard zero duds from Dvorak. I didn't think it was possible to like everything I've heard from one composer, but apparently he blows that whole idea out the door.

[Christo]

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')

[Madiel]

Somehow I knew this thread was coming. 

Let's see, what would I instinctively go for right now...

Piano Trio No.3
String Quartet No.11
String Quartet No.13
Symphony No.8
Nature, Life and Love

But really my Dvorak exploration only picked up steam a couple of years ago and I still don't feel that well versed in many of the pieces that I have recordings of.

[Mirror Image]

Great lists everyone. Keep 'em coming!