Johannes Brahms persuaded his publisher Simrock to take a chance on the up-and-coming Antonin Dvorák by issuing the latter's Moravian Duets. Simrock, soon impressed by the music's sales, asked Dvorák for further pieces in the increasingly popular nationalistic style, modeled if possible on the Hungarian Dances of Brahms. Dvorák complied with eight of what he called Slavonic Dances for two players at one piano. Despite the suite's title, these dances are narrowly inspired by Bohemian folk music, not by the broader Slavonic world (as would be Dvorák's successor suite). "Inspired" is the key word, for Dvorák refused to quote actual folk tunes; he wanted to evoke music of his native land in a wholly original way.

Instead of borrowing melodies, Dvorák employed traditional rhythms and structures, hewing mainly to five Bohemian dance styles. No. 1 in C major (Presto) and No. 8 in G minor (Presto) employ the furiant, exuberant, triple-time Czech "swaggerer" dance full of complicated cross rhythms. No. 2 in E minor (Allegretto scherzando) is a dumka, the manic-depressive dance familiar from Smetana's "Dumky" Trio, which characteristically has a slow, lamenting opening and a frenetic second section. This dance actually originated in the Ukraine, but by Dvorák's time it was thoroughly Bohemian. No. 3 in D major (Allegretto scherzando) is essentially a polka, despite its name a Bohemian dance with possible Polish origins.

No. 4 in F major (Tempo di minuetto) and No. 6 in A flat major (Poco allegro) are slow Czech waltzes, a form called sousedska, or "neighbors' dance," generally reserved for older folk. No. 5 in A major (Allegro vivace) and No. 7 in C minor (Allegro assai) are examples of one of the most characteristic Czech dances, the skocna, or "jumping dance." As Simrock expected, Dvorák's Slavonic Dances sold well, and in 1887 the publisher brought out this set and its sequel in Dvorák's own effervescent orchestrations, with the same opus numbers, keys, and order.

© All Music Guide

1.Presto in C

Originally composed for piano duet, the two sets of orchestrated Slavonic Dances were first performed at the Crystal Palace on February 15, 1879.

Performed at a Presto tempo, this first dance is in a Czech rhythm known as a "furianty," a style that Dvorak also used for several of his scherzos, most notably the one in his Symphony No. 6. This basic lilting rhythm of the melody is built of one measure of three beats (two eighths, two quarters), and another measure of 1+2 quarters with a staccato skip on the first beat and a marked accent on the second. (Dvorak had a marked preference for trochaic and dactylic meters). The percussion and bass instruments emphasize the melodic rhythm and also create a inner accent: 2+1, 1+2, 1+1+1, 1+2.

The bright, innocently joyful theme is played by the full orchestra at the opening in an ebullient C major. Immediately a variation in A major echoes the theme with a pared down instrumentation for winds (minus clarinets), horns giving the backbeat accent on the second beat, and the low strings and bassoons on the first and third beats. A simple triangle on the first beat adds a lovely timbre.

The next variation of the theme seems at first to be in D major except that the lower strings and tympani keep emphasizing a C natural, which creates the feeling of a village bagpipe modal melody, until the music modulates into G major and then G minor. (This is a kind of inverted so-called "Moravian modulation," favored by the composer, which normally proceeds from a minor key to a major key one step lower). The melody is further metamorphosed in this (Lydian) mode when the full orchestra returns, ostensibly in F, but the composer is tricking our ears, as the actual key turns out to be C major.

The next variation features a kind of hurdy-gurdy imitation with the melody in parallel thirds in the oboes, the clarinets and bassoons forming an oom-pah-pah accompaniment, and the flute tootling along in rolling eighths. This is all doubled by pizzicato and lightly bowed strings. The melody gradually fragments and grows quieter. But the composer has delightfully tricked the listener again, and the full orchestra suddenly blasts out the cadence. There is a little piano dynamic laugh with pizzicato strings and staccato winds, followed by a single held note in the oboes, leading to a transition.

The second theme enters, a gradually descending staccato line in A major with one offbeat accent. This melodic form which returns to the beginning note is a definite Czech folk style. A brief bridge in B flat minor (another inverted Moravian modulation) is presented in a fluty, whistling orchestration. Flowing string create a grand waltz. All the beginning sections are then recapitulated, lightly tripping strings over drones appear before the final coda which features an enthusiastic, splashy, emphatically repeated IV-I cadence.

© All Music Guide

2.Allegretto scherzando in E-

The Slavonic Dances, Op. 46, is the first set of eight dances written by Dvorak "to preserve, to translate into music, the spirit of a people distinct in their national melodies or folk-songs." The pieces were commissioned by Simrock, Brahms' publisher, who wanted to take advantage of the popularity of Brahms' Hungarian Dances.

Dvorak's Slavonic Dance No. 2 is a study in contrasts. Unlike the other dances in his Op. 46, which are Bohemian in origin, this is a "dumka," a piece of Ukrainian folk music likened to a lament, or meditation. Dumky, usually in duple meter and in minor mode, began as laments sung by women. Instrumental dumky began appearing in the latter nineteenth century, written primarily by Slavic composers, such as Janácek, Lysensko, Mussorgsky.

As in most of the dumky written by Dvorak, there are bright, fast sections that intersperse with the minor mode sections. This dumka begins with a thoughtful, tuneful, strolling melody in E minor, but which ends with a G major fillip. The fillip leads to a quick dance that sounds as if a dancing troupe or acrobats have suddenly appeared in the village, complete with their own band. (It is somewhat reminiscent of Offenbach's Can-Can.) Then the thoughtful melody is back, with slight variations, as is typical of the folk tradition. The ending fillip is taken up by the band, sped up, and twisted back into their quick dance of before. This alternating of the two melodies occurs once more, before the first melody finally imposes, with a coda comprised of the little fillip being repeated in various instruments as the piece drifts off. Opposite motion of the lines among orchestra voices are heard throughout the work. Smooth legato melodies are accompanied by shorter, faster figures. Figures and motives are broken up, inverted, re-combined, and played against one another, while tempo changes occur frequently. Shimmering chords are offset with bombastic ones. This dumka is not really a lamentation, but a daydream intruded upon by the excitement of the real world.

© All Music Guide

3.Poco allegro in Ab

It was through Brahms' connections that Dvorák began his generally successful relationship with his publisher Simrock. Among the fruits of that relationship were the two books of Slavonic Dances, both of which were composed at the urging of Simrock. While Brahms also influenced the works of Dvorák, the latter did not follow his lead in his approach to the Slavonic Dances: Brahms, in all but a few instances, used genuine folk melodies in his Hungarian Dances, while Dvorák used only his own themes, albeit in folk-like spirit. Thus, this A flat major third dance, an infectious polka, has all of the flavors of Czech or Bohemian folk music, but contains original music. The main theme has a carefree spirit in its joyous, unhurried gait, but its second subject turns festive and good-naturedly boisterous. Still, the overall manner of the music in the first half is more lighthearted and relaxed than rollicking, especially in the subdued middle section. When the main theme returns, it grows more animated, its orchestration fuller and more brilliant. The music from the festive second subject closes out the work with a colorful, lively ending. This dance typically has a duration of four to five minutes.

© All Music Guide

7.Allegro assai in C-

The first book of Slavonic Dances became widely popular throughout Europe after its Prague premiere on May 16, 1879. Thereafter, Dvorák, previously a little-known figure, commanded respect and admiration as one of the leading composers of his day. He would soon draw comparisons to Brahms, who exerted considerable influence over his works and helped him in his career. This C minor dance is one of the first book's more spirited numbers. Like No. 5, it is a skoèná, the dance form employed by Smetana in The Bartered Bride's "Dance of the Comedians." It is a jaunty kind of dance number, called a jumping dance by some. It begins in a relatively relaxed mood, the main theme a playful, somewhat chameleonic creation that suddenly turns brisk, almost furious in its pacing and celebratory manner. It also can take on a quite exotic guise or at other times seem to cackle. In the end, one must assess this joyous three-and-a-half-minute piece as one of the composer's more imaginative dances here. And despite the folk-like character of this and all the works in the Slavonic Dances, the themes are original.

© Robert Cummings, Rovi