NOSPR/Axelrod/Metzger/Symphony in the Service of Identity

Before the concert, at 6.30 p.m., we invite you to the chamber hall for a meeting with the editor Piotr Matwieczuk (Program 2 of the Polish Radio), who will discuss the works performed that evening. Entrance to the lecture is free, to participate in the lecture is entitled to show a subscription card or a ticket to the concert. The lecture will also be broadcast live on YouTube.

Antonín Dvořák defined the national characteristics of the music of his homeland and made a huge contribution to the cultural identity of the Czechs. At the end of the 19th century, the inhabitants of the United States had discussions about their own musical specificity, so they invited a specialist to support their know-how. The task was not easy, because for Americans classical music was never a native tradition. After all, what can be considered native in a country created by immigrants?

Dvořák's thought was libertarian and bold at the time: he became interested in the musical tradition of Native Americans and was quite familiar with African-American songs. The discussion about the “Americanness” of his Symphony “From the New World” was to ignite listeners for decades to come, because the Czech composer filtered what he heard through his own sensitivity and did not use any quotations, only stylizations. Today, Charles Ives is considered the first truly American symphonist, but the position of the masterpiece of the Czech composer remains unthreatened.

The Czech suite is a much simpler matter: three of its parts are stylizations of native folk dances. Polka, sousedská or furiant are easily recognizable in this composition, which gives an image of the early stage of Dvořák's work.

Marcel Dupré is a composer still little known outside the circle of organ work. He was the grandmaster of this instrument and a continuator of the great French organ tradition (like Dvořák, he made his contribution to the development of classical music across the ocean). In his Concerto in E minor he uses the power of sound and the richness of colours of modern organs to create a symphonic space with cinematic momentum.

Adam Suprynowicz (Polish Radio)

Duration of the concert (including the break): approx. 120 minutes

More concerts as part of the S1 symphonic concert series.

Performers: NOSPR; Angela Metzger — organ

Program: Antonín Dvořák — Czech Suite Op. 39; Marcel Dupré — Organ Concerto in E minor Op. 31; Antonín Dvořák — 9th Symphony in E minor From the New World, Op. 95