CHAPTER VII.
BRAHMS AND DVOŘÁK.
Opinions of Brahms — Weingartner — H.T. Finck — Bülow on Rubinstein — H. Davey — Schumann — W.J. Henderson — Philip Spitta — Sir Hubert Parry — W.H. Hadow — Piano Trio, op. 8: two versions — Horn Trio, op. 40 — String Sextett in B♭ — String Sextett in G major — Piano Quartett in G minor — Quintett in F minor — String Quartetts — Thematic resemblances — String Quintetts — Clarinet Quintett — Dvořák — Revival of Bohemian music — Birthplace and early career — Criticisms on his works — His symphonic poems for orchestra — An American national style of music — The Negro Quartett — String Quartetts — Piano Quartetts — Piano Trios — String Sextett — Other chamber music.
The individuality of Brahms (1833-97) was quite as pronounced as that of Spohr, although in a different way, but his creative musical powers were much greater. It is sometimes said that Schumann is the one great composer since Beethoven; but when we shall have arrived at that point of time from which Brahms’s position can be adequately reviewed, the extreme probability is that he will then be regarded as the great one, rather than Schumann, or any of the others who have lived and laboured since the death of the Bonn master.
Opinions of Brahms
Weingartner
Wagner, of course, is not to be reckoned with in this connection. His work was of an altogether different order, and no useful purpose is served in discussing him along with the composers of absolute music. This favourable opinion of Brahms is not, however, shared by some critics, and as it is well to hear both sides, some of the opposing views may usefully be quoted. The well-known German composer-conductor Felix Weingartner, in a recently published article on the post-Beethoven symphonists, says:—“Brahms was, above all, a master of form. His works are of an unimpeachable technical perfection, but I have only discerned a warm, palpitating feeling of life in a very few of them, which then has great value, owing to the junction of beautiful thoughts and a perfect construction.... Taken altogether Brahms’s is, I might say, scientific music, composed of sonorous forms and phrases; it is not the language of humanity, mysterious, but still infinitely expressive and comprehensible.... The music of our great masters is artistic, and, as such, natural; that of Brahms is artificial.... The works of Brahms which attract me most, such as, for instance, the Symphony in D major, are not esteemed as the summit of his creative power by his enthusiastic partisans. They give the preference to several others, such as the Triumphlied, the E minor Symphony, and the Clarinet-Quintett, which, to me, are loud-sounding hollownesses.”
H.T. Finck
Henry T. Finck,[26] the American critic, disputes the position usually ascribed to Brahms. After implying that Schumann was already affected by a growing mental malady when he so strongly advocated Brahms’s works, Mr. Finck goes on to say that, “it was not until it occurred to his admirers to pit him against Wagner that Brahms began to loom up as a big man.... In England another violent enemy of Wagner[27] and intimate friend of Brahms’s, Joachim, championed Brahms’s cause and helped him to a temporary vogue.... It was a very clever bit of strategy thus to pit Brahms against Wagner, for it gave him a prominence which otherwise he would never have had.... In chamber music Brahms holds his own against any modern rival; but his symphonies, while cleverly constructed, have not one tithe of the ideas to be found in Rubinstein’s Dramatic and Ocean Symphonies; and the same lack of ideas we note in his songs, as compared with Franz’s. Yet Brahms’s symphonies and songs are to-day on all concert programmes, while Franz and Rubinstein are neglected. But it will not remain so.... Ideas alone confer immortality on works of art; and genius might be defined as the faculty for originating ideas. Brahms was a great dress-maker—a musical Worth. No one ever knew better than he how to cut and shape musical garments, and to trim them with elegant variations. But his faculty for originating ideas was weak, and therefore he is not immortal.”
Bülow on Rubinstein
This is plain-speaking, but it should be received with caution, when we call to mind that this writer allows himself the licence at times to make such loose statements as that Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony is twice as long as any symphony preceding it, and especially in view of his over-confident assertion about Rubinstein’s unending symphonies. Some of us do not forget Hans von Bülow’s caustic wit in this matter. “Rubinstein’s works,” he said, “remind me of a journey in Russia. Long stretches of barren and tiresome country, relieved here and there with the oasis of a picturesque and interesting city.”
H. Davey
Mr. Henry Davey, in his Student’s History of Music, gives his opinion thus:—“There is, however, one German composer who stands out above the rest, and has been sometimes spoken of as if he were really a genius worthy to rank with the greatest. This is Johannes Brahms, born in 1833 at Altona, and introduced to the world by Schumann. He has published more than one hundred works, very clever and, generally, very dry. They are laboured in the bad sense of the word. Brahms with splendid gifts seems to have gone early on the wrong tack, imagining that the more abstruse he made his works the better they would be. Consequently he tangled up his themes with a complication of uneven rhythms, ravelling very ordinary ideas with skeins of harsh counterpoint; in fact, making his works as unpopular as possible, apparently with the idea that if they were unpopular they must necessarily be good.”
Another critic,[28] whose words are curiously like those just quoted, says:—“When Brahms writes musically he is usually not profound; and when he writes profoundly, he is, sometimes, not musical.... Take the opening theme (of op. 115): would not anybody without the time direction take it to be a slow scherzo? He has clouded it with his usual uneven rhythms and tangled accompaniments, but that does not atone for the poverty of the theme.”
Schumann
Against these may be placed the well-known opinion of Schumann which appeared in the Neue Zeitschrift für Musik in 1853. It is needless to repeat all that Schumann said. How he found in Brahms’s works a likeness to “some onward foaming flood, bearing on the surface of its waves as they dashed downward, the peaceful rainbow, and surrounded on the bank by butterflies and nightingales’ voices. When this composer sinks his magic wand to where the powers of the masses in the orchestra and chorus lend him their strength, we shall find still more wonderful glances into the secret of the spirit-world in store for us.” Such words from one of the standing of Robert Schumann, poetically expressed though they be, may not be passed idly by.
W.J. Henderson
To this may be added the view of another competent and thoughtful writer.[29] “Brahms’s compositions show a completeness of architectonic detail, superimposed upon a symmetrical and inevitable organic development, such as are to be found in those of no other symphonist except Beethoven.... Some day, I think, if not soon, the world will see how profoundly representative of his nation and his time Brahms was, and he will be hailed, as Milton was, an organ voice of his country.... It may take time for the entire musical world to come under the spell of this austere utterance; but Brahms had the happiness of knowing ere he died that, wherever music was cultivated, his individuality at least had made itself known.”
Philip Spitta
In his Essay on Brahms (Paetel, Berlin), the well-known author of the monumental life of John Sebastian Bach, Philip Spitta, says:—“The leading characteristics of Brahms’s music are all plainly visible in his first ten works. A manliness that is almost brusque, a dislike for purely emotional music, stern conciseness in the melodic matter, a delight in organic structure, particularly by the use of strict polyphony, all combining with the freer style of Beethoven to produce entirely new results. The serious underlying feeling, a sense of depth, and a shrouded exquisite beauty of sentiment under a dignified reserve.... Such a complete comprehension of all the forms and means of musical expression as we find in Brahms, and the way to apply them in the forms of composition he affected, is really stupendous, and in its way quite unprecedented.”
Sir Hubert Parry
Speaking of the modern tendencies in music, Sir Hubert Parry[30] says:—“And even in the highest branches of art, represented by the noble symphonies of Brahms, which illustrate the loftiest standard of style of the day, the significant change from the old ideals is noticeable. For the aim is but rarely after what is equivalent to external beauty in music. What beauty is aimed at is beauty of thought, the beauty of nobleness, and high musical intelligence.”
W.H. Hadow
The personal note is added by Mr. Hadow[31] when he recites the story of Brahms taking up his residence in Vienna, the city of high musical activity, in 1862. “As yet his compositions were little known, but there was no musician in Vienna who had not heard his name or felt some expectation at his arrival. Before long, introduction had ripened into acquaintance, and acquaintance into a many-sided friendship. Men were glad to welcome a new genius of conspicuous power and encyclopædic knowledge, who never spoke of himself, who never wrote a line in his own defence, who never attacked an opponent, or depreciated a rival. Add to this the quiet voice, the undemonstrative manner, the kindly disposition that expended itself in a thousand services, the upright honesty that would never stoop even to conquer, and it is not hard to explain a personal popularity which has lasted unimpaired to the present day. The artist is too often to be described in Mr. Stevenson’s phrase, as ‘a man who sows hurry and reaps indigestion.’... It is not a little refreshing to contemplate a genius who, with all the astonishing amount that he accomplished, yet found time to enjoy his dinner, to bear his part in the company of his friends, and to become the sworn ally of all the children in the neighbourhood.”
An examination of the list of Brahms’s works shows that he found a congenial field for his labours in the department of chamber music. His works for Piano Solo number 23, amongst them being the remarkable Sonatas op. 1 and 2, which were probably among the compositions that drew from Schumann his highly appreciative notices of Brahms. There are seven Duet Sonatas, viz.: three for piano and violin (truly great works), two for piano and ’cello, and two for piano and clarinet. The last-named, op. 120, are almost his final compositions, and contain some admirable music, especially that in E♭, No. 2. The andante of No. 1 is also a beautiful and characteristic movement, by which is meant that its beauty is no mere prettiness, but rather a noble expression of the composer’s best thought.
Piano Trio, op. 8: Two Versions
There are also seventeen other chamber music works, many of them being of the highest importance. The Trio op. 8, for piano, violin, and ’cello, may be named first, seeing that after a lapse of nearly forty years Brahms, with a rare sense of self-criticism, re-wrote the work and published the new edition, thus, as it were, opening to us quite freely the windows of his workshop. Each movement of the trio has undergone some change, the chief of these being the first allegro con brio, which is shortened by some two hundred bars, the melodious second subject of the original version being replaced by other matter, and a fugal episode, based on this subject, which on second thoughts Brahms evidently rejected as incongruous, is eliminated altogether. The next movement, a scherzo, remains, save as to slight details, unaltered until the last thirty bars. In these the treatment is different from the first edition, a series of descending chromatic chords in the piano part being replaced by passages evolved from previously-used themes, and the string parts are radically altered. The adagio has undergone a considerable amount of alteration. In place of the second subject an entirely new theme appears; the allegro episode (Doppio Movimento) is discarded, and the length of the whole movement curtailed by more than one-third. The finale, originally marked “allegro molto agitato,” is marked “allegro” only, and instead of 518 bars, it has now only 322. New thematic matter replaces that which is omitted, and generally speaking the whole movement is a good deal transformed.
We have here a somewhat rare, although of course by no means unique, opportunity of comparing the treatment of similar musical ideas by a great master at two different periods of his career, and while no doubt the changes of some of the original themes for others is of interest, the chief lesson which this revised version enforces, is that of conciseness of musical utterance. The first edition contains more passages of melodic beauty (or, may we say, more tunes approximating to prettiness?), and much more of scholarly working out; but for all this there can be little doubt that Brahms perceived the organic weakness which arises out of this diffuseness, however charming the subject-matter may have been in itself, and hence arose the artistic impulse to rewrite the work.
It would be interesting if some of our chamber music artists were to perform the two versions at the same concert.
The other Trios are: op. 40 in E♭, for piano, violin, and horn; op. 114 for piano, clarinet, and ’cello, which is not generally regarded as a satisfactory work; and the two for the ordinary combination of piano, violin, and ’cello, op. 87 and op. 101, both of which are fine works.
Horn Trio, op. 40
The Horn Trio, op. 40, may be regarded as specially individualised in style, and if one of a composer’s works more than another, may be spoken of as revealing the man himself, this trio certainly seems to do so with Brahms. There is a dignified simplicity and al fresco-like charm about the commencement of the work, which, with here and there a touch of sombreness, continues until we reach the scherzo, a busy movement alive with bright and joyous hunting-horn effects.
It is, however, in the “Adagio mesto” that we find the strong individuality of the composer, and a deeply-brooding and fateful expression of feeling, which is, in a certain mood, more peculiarly a characteristic of Brahms than any other quality which he possesses. The whole work, and especially this adagio, is well worthy of sympathetic study.
String Sextett in B♭
The String Sextett in B♭, op. 18, has often been spoken of as one of the finest specimens of Brahms’s earlier compositions. One writer has called it “the most magnificent piece of chamber music that has appeared since the death of Beethoven.” Its production at Vienna in 1862 under the famous quartett leader, Hellmesberger, was followed by an outburst of enthusiasm, which was all the more remarkable seeing that prior to this the critics had received Brahms’s works with marked coldness.
String Sextett in G Major
The other String Sextett, op. 36, in G major, was also given under the same leader in the Vienna winter season of 1867, and, in the words of one report of the concert, “It is no discredit to either composer or audience that the new work was received with more astonishment than delight. The extremely elaborate polyphony, which is one of its distinguishing attributes, is probably too intricate to be comprehended by any one at a single presentation, and we may infer that the public actually did not hear the melodies for the simple reason of their abundance.” The charming second subject of the first movement (quoted below) well illustrates the latter part of this statement—
Brahms, Op. 36.
while an examination of the score reveals a wealth of material which can only be assessed by patient and loving study.
Piano Quartett in G Minor
It was in his Piano Quartett, op. 25, in G minor, that Brahms made his first appearance in Vienna, after he took up his residence there in 1862, and although the work is now regarded as an intelligible and convincing piece of chamber music, it was at first received with strong disapprobation by the Viennese musical public. “Dull and ill-developed,” were the terms applied to the first three movements; and the last, because of its being written in Hungarian dance style, was condemned as without precedent and artistically bad. That Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven had already introduced such movements into their chamber music was either unknown to these critics, or ignored by them.
The andante of this quartett contains some of its author’s noblest thoughts, expressed with the utmost clearness. Special attention may be directed to the middle section in C major of this movement, with its strongly-marked military rhythm and highly characteristic effects.
The other two compositions in this form are that in A major, op. 26, and in C minor, op. 60. In the commencement of the former we have a fine example of poetic expression, yet at the close the same material is worked out, in a contrapuntal manner, which is quite remarkable. The slow movement of this Quartett has been referred to by Mr. Fuller Maitland as an example of “exquisite tone colour,”[32] and this work, and that in G minor already referred to, are regarded by this writer as “among the loveliest of Brahms’s works.”
The Piano Quartett in C minor, op. 60, does not show the same high qualities as the other two, and is indeed somewhat lacking in spontaneity. The second entry of the strings in the opening movement has a chromatic passage which is more like Spohr than Brahms, nor is the chorale which appears in the last movement at all in his usual style.
Quintett in F Minor
Of the works for piano and strings, the great Quintett in F minor, op. 34, is a remarkable example. It has been said that Brahms has the gift of making simplicity memorable, and this is illustrated by the commencement of this quintett. To hear it once is to be impressed with its power, and although viewed theoretically it seems almost commonplace, it produces in performance an effect which is truly vital. The piano, first violin, and ’cello begin thus, the first three bars being in unison and octave:—
Brahms, Op. 34.
A little farther on in this movement we meet with a melodious fragment very characteristic of this composer. Three notes, embraced within the range of a minor third, are used together in contrary motion, and furnish a theme which, although curiously simple, plays a considerable part in the development of the movement:—
Brahms, Op. 34.
It has been urged against the scherzo which follows that it inclines too much to be orchestral in effect, and of the finale that it is, as one writer has it, “overcharged with subject-matter.” But however this may be as regards these two movements, it will hardly be disputed that in the andante, whose opening passage is quoted below, we have music of rare and solemn beauty, deep yet clear, profound yet spontaneous. We quote the pianoforte part, which is accompanied with a subdued imitative figure by the first violin and viola, while the ’cello plays a few pizzicato bass notes:—
Brahms, Op. 34.
String Quartetts
In the important form of the String Quartett Brahms has left only three works, viz.: two (in C minor and A minor), op. 51, and one (in B♭), op. 67. The number is few as compared with the other great masters, and especially of course with Haydn, but the quality of each work is remarkable. In England, at any rate, these quartetts have met with a cautious and critical reception. The reason for this is, no doubt, that for their true appreciation they require study and many hearings, conditions which unfortunately are not common amongst us. Amateurs, however, who play them, and know them intimately, will hardly share in these adverse opinions. Some of the movements have been spoken of as lacking in inspiration, an opinion which, if one accepts Brahms at all, seems strange, for in none of his works does his peculiar genius shine more clearly through the medium in which he works than in these. One may reject Brahms altogether, falling foul of his idioms and methods, as some do, but it is hard to understand how compositions so characteristic as these can be rejected by any who rank themselves as students or disciples of this master. The slow movements of all these string quartetts may be referred to as showing with what true melodic charm Brahms can invest his music, and this is all the more notable if one considers the unusual manner in which the beautiful tunes are often presented. For example, the romance of No. 1 in C minor:—
Brahms, Op. 51, No. 1.
Farther on, at the twenty-seventh bar:—
And, later, the following:—
Such music is not, however, “for the market-place.” It requires the most delicate handling, and only perfect technique, united to the highest taste, are equal to the expression of such lofty and beautiful thoughts.
Thematic Resemblances
The resemblance of certain of Brahms’s themes to those of other composers has often been noted, sometimes in a captious and ill-natured spirit, whereas the true interest of such a matter lies in the opportunity which is thereby afforded of showing how two master-minds can deal with like material. An instance of this is the finale of his Symphony op. 68, as compared with the leading melody of the vocal part of Beethoven’s Choral Symphony; another, the commencement of his A major Sonata for piano and violin, and the Preislied of Wagner’s Meistersinger; and again, the following from the String Quartett in C minor, op. 51:—
Brahms, Op. 51, No. 1.
Wagner, “Rheingold.”
It remains to speak of the two String Quintetts op. 88 and op. 111, and the Quintett op. 115, for clarinet and strings.
String Quintetts
The op. 88 was written during a summer holiday at Ischl in the year 1882. It is a masterly composition, the first movement being of an animated and joyous character. This is followed by a slow movement (grave ed appassionato), varied by two quicker episodes. The finale (allegro energico) is written in free fugal form, and has an unusually prominent part for the first viola.
The second String Quintett, op. 111, in G major, is a delightful work, in its composer’s ripest style. There is an unusual tenderness of expression in the melodies of the first three movements, the lightsome allegretto being well contrasted with the sombre adagio, in which, as in the other Quintett, an important part is assigned to the first viola. The vivace, with which the work ends, although complex in texture, is a vigorous and effective movement.
Clarinet Quintett
The Quintett for clarinet and strings, op. 115, which appeared about the same time as the clarinet Trio which has already been mentioned, was first heard in England in 1892, the clarinettist being the now well-known German artist Herr Mühlfeld (Brahms’s “unsere prima donna”), who, it is understood, came from Vienna at the desire of the composer.
This work has gradually grown more and more into favour, which is what might be expected, for while such music makes large demands on both performers and listeners, it amply repays study, and is indeed a rich addition to the treasure-house of art.
To the serious student and lover of good music the works of Brahms are a lasting delight, expressing as they do the purest and best of our musical aspirations. What the great masters of the past did for their day and generation Brahms has done for ours, and it is safe to say that the sympathetic attitude of any community towards him may be taken as a conclusive proof that its musical state and condition is sound and true.
THE BOHEMIAN QUARTETT.
OSKAR NEDBAL.
Viola.
KAREL HOFFMANN.
1st Violin.
HANUS WIHAN.
’Cello.
JOSEF SUK.
2nd Violin.
Dvořák
Revival of Bohemian Music
Two names, Smetana (1824-84) and Dvořák, are intimately associated with the revival of music which began in Bohemia about the year 1860. The political condition of the country had, since about 1620, been one of national degradation. Conquered by the Emperor Ferdinand of Austria, the people were down-trodden and oppressed, their language prohibited, and as a result the arts practically dead. In the year 1860, however, an imperial decree appeared which granted a measure of liberty to the people. This was speedily followed by a better state of public affairs, in which, of course, music participated. Smetana, who had held the appointment of conductor to the Philharmonic Society at Gothenburg, resigned that post, and returned to Prague to assume what was practically the direction of the newly-liberated national musical forces. Here he found Dvořák, a young man with rapidly developing musical powers, whose career had hitherto been one of comparative poverty. He was of humble, although by no means ignoble birth, for if his father had not wealth and worldly position, he at least had health and a strong character, and in addition to this he was also somewhat of a musician, although of a rude and uncultured sort.
Birthplace and Early Career
It was in the Bohemian village Nelahozeves, which is situated on the river Moldau not far from Kralup, that Dvořák was born in the year 1841, and here he was reared, working at his father’s occupation, which was that of an innkeeper and butcher. At the age of eighteen, however, the musical impulses which had already made themselves evident in the youth became too strong for parental restraint, and he left home and went to Prague, where he obtained admission to the city organ school, and, that he might earn enough to keep body and soul together, he played violin and viola in the orchestras of both church and theatre. Under the tuition which he here obtained his powers rapidly developed, and during this time he seems to have composed a great deal. Happily he now learned of the Austrian state aid which was to be obtained by needy artists, and making application, a stipend was granted him, mainly, it seems, through the influence of Brahms, who happened to be one of the committee having charge of the fund. Thus relieved from the carking cares of poverty, Dvořák gave himself up to his life-work even more earnestly than before, with what an excellent result we now know.
That his early surroundings exerted an adverse influence on his artistic career there can, however, hardly be a doubt, and only the opulence of his natural powers could have triumphed over these and given him that large measure of success to which he has eventually attained.
Criticisms on his Works
We are all by this time familiar with the stages of criticism through which his works have passed—undue length and want of conciseness, fresh episodes instead of organic development, the continual use of national idioms, and the like. To these must be opposed the splendid qualities of melody, form, and colour which are found in his best works, such as The Stabat Mater, The Spectre’s Bride, the D minor Symphony, and the A major Piano Quintett, and no just assessment can refuse for Dvořák a most exalted place amongst contemporary musicians.
True, the Sclav idiom pervades a number of his works, but this is, as it were, a mere accident of his nationality, and in no way detracts from the splendour of his achievements. We do not reject Burns because he wrote a good deal in a Scottish dialect, or Tennyson’s “Northern Farmer” because it requires a glossary.
Dvořák, although a lover of the romantic, has nearly always worked on classical lines, and to him must be credited the addition of certain new forms to the musical literature of our time. For example, “The Furiant,” a kind of wild and riotous scherzo, and “The Dumka,” with its alternate episodes of sadness and revelry.
His Symphonic Poems for Orchestra
In saying this, it is not overlooked that Dvořák has recently published several so-called symphonic poems for the orchestra, which are of course programme music. We allude to “Der Wassermann,” “Die Mittagshexe,” and “Das Goldene Spinnrad.” These are works of no ordinary kind, and there is in them no want of melody and orchestral colour. Yet they cannot be regarded as entirely successful. This form does not seem to be the composer’s true medium, although the works are deeply interesting as showing the effect of modern influences on a receptive and sensitive musical temperament.
An American National Style of Music
The Negro Quartett
During his residence in New York as director of the National Conservatoire, from 1892 to 1895, Dvořák conceived the idea of an American School of National Music based on negro songs and dances. From the standpoint of the negro question and of national pride it was hardly a happy notion, yet he must be credited with a large measure of success in his efforts to carry it out, for in the String Quartett in F, op. 96, and in the Orchestral Symphony in E minor (“From the New World”), are to be found a remarkable idealisation of tunes hitherto more associated with the clog-dance than with the classics.[33] The whole of this Negro Quartett, as it has been called, will repay study, but the chief point of interest is, of course, the employment of those tunes which are either directly drawn or closely imitated from negro sources.
1st Movement, String Quartett, Op. 96.
Dvořák.
Finale, String Quartett, Op. 96.
Dvořák.
1st Movement, from “The New World Symphony.”
Dvořák.
String Quartetts
Of the String Quartetts that in E♭, op. 51, is the best known, and, along with the Negro Quartett from which quotations have just been made, is the most frequently performed. The second movement of the E♭ Quartett is an exquisite example of the Dumka or Elegy, and is one of the most charming things which Dvořák has given to the world. The melodic substance of the work is chiefly Sclavonic in character, but the genius of the composer has transformed and ennobled that which otherwise would have remained as the rough material of a mere musical dialect. The other String Quartetts, which include op. 105 and 106, are less interesting, especially the A minor op. 16, and the D minor op. 34, in which the tunes and the general feeling are much below the usual standard of Dvořák’s works.
Piano Quartetts
The Piano Quartett in D, op. 23 (Schlesinger, Berlin), may be recommended to amateurs in search of music which, while presenting no very serious executive difficulties, is full of charm. Dvořák has written nothing more delightful than the first movement, which commences with a quaint theme given to the ’cello, and of which much use is subsequently made. An interesting air with variations follows, and the work ends with a characteristic allegretto scherzando.
The other Piano Quartett in E♭, op. 87, is much more elaborate, and abounds with passages skilfully worked out, but the themes are of less interest and indeed at times almost commonplace.
Piano Trios
Dvořák has written four Trios for piano, violin, and ’cello, all of which deserve to take high rank. The first, in B♭, op. 21, is spontaneous in style and feeling, reminding one indeed a good deal of Mendelssohn. The adagio is more characteristic of its composer, as are the allegretto scherzando and the finale. The whole work is well worthy of attention.
The second, in G minor, op. 26, is also an interesting work. The arpeggio passages in the first movement may perhaps be regarded as ungrateful for the stringed instruments, but the remainder of the trio is most effective, and were it for nothing else than the largo, a nobly expressed piece of emotional music, the trio should command the highest esteem. It is curious to notice that the opening phrase of the final allegro strikingly resembles in rhythm the finale of Schumann’s Piano Quartett in E♭, op. 47.
The Dumka Trio, op. 90, consists of six exquisite elegies expressed in the form from which the trio takes its name, each episode consisting of a slow pathetic movement, contrasted with a rapid and impetuous one. The work is the outcome of strong national feeling, and is sincere and convincing in its effect.
String Sextett
The String Sextett in A, op. 48, which has already been mentioned, is one of the compositions whereby Dvořák’s name was introduced into England. “This sextett,” says Mr. Joseph Bennett, who was one of the first to recognise and urge the claims of this new voice, “is a good example of the new composer. Its plan and method, according to the late J.W. Davison, are altogether original; but this statement, while perfectly true, does not represent its full claim to the rarest of musical qualities. We find originality in the character of its themes, especially in those of the second movement (elegy), the third (furiant), and the fourth, which is an air (varied) of the broadest national type, and so puzzling in key that Mr. Davison is fain to describe it as ‘in more respects than one calculated to perplex the ear as to its absolute tonality though virtually in A major.’ Not less original than the themes are, in many cases, their harmonic treatment, while nowhere is the higher mission of music neglected, in virtue of which it appeals to an inner sense at the same time that it confers physical and intellectual gratification. The elaboration of the principal movements forms another striking feature in the work.... Some of the details confer upon it an exquisite piquancy and grace; and a first hearing of the entire composition involves a series of surprises, so unexpected and new are the abounding touches of the master’s hand. Clearly we must know more of Dvořák, and that soon.” These words were written sympathetically and with prophetic insight in the year 1880, and since then we have heard The Stabat Mater, The Requiem, The Spectre’s Bride, the Orchestral Symphonies, and many other works, all of which have strongly confirmed the high hopes here foreshadowed.
Other Chamber Music
In addition to what has been mentioned, the list of Dvořák’s chamber music embraces three String Quintetts, a Serenade for wind and strings, op. 44, a Trio for two violins and viola, op. 74, a Sonata for piano and violin, op. 57, and a Quintett for piano and strings, op. 81, in A major. The last-named consists of four movements, viz., an allegro, a dumka, a furiant, and a finale in rondo form. The work is full of vitality, and rich in those qualities which appeal alike to intellect and heart.
That Dvořák is occasionally prodigal of his musical means and lacking in restraint is no doubt to a certain extent true, but, in the words of Mr. W.H. Hadow, “for all this he is a true genius, true in thought, fertile in imagination, warm and sympathetic in temper of mind. He has borne his part in a national cause, and has thereby won for himself a triumph that will endure. He has enriched his people, and in doing so has augmented the treasury of the whole world.”