DVOŘÁK
(Anton Dvořák: born in Mülhausen (Nelahozeves), near Kralup, Bohemia, September 8, 1841; died in Prague, May 1, 1904)
OVERTURE, "NATURE" [44]: Op. 91
This overture is the first section of a tripartite work entitled "Nature, Life, Love," which was originally intended by Dvořák to be performed as a whole. The second division of this triple overture is known to-day as "Carnival" (Op. 92), the third as "Othello" (Op. 93). The three overtures were first performed at Prague, under the composer's direction, on April 28, 1892.
Dvořák is said to be responsible for the ideas embodied in the following description of the poetic scheme of the "Triple Overture," which was published in the programme of the concert at which Dvořák made his début in America (at Carnegie Hall, New York, October 21, 1892):
"This composition, which is a musical expression of the emotions awakened in Dr. Antonin Dvořák by certain aspects of the three great creative forces of the Universe—Nature, Life, and Love—was conceived nearly a year ago, while the composer still lived in Bohemia.... The three parts of the overture are linked together by a certain underlying melodic theme. This theme recurs with the insistence of the inevitable personal note marking the reflections of a humble individual, who observes and is moved by the manifold signs of the unchangeable laws of the Universe."
Part I—"Nature"—of the "Triple Overture" was thus interpreted, with the sanction, it may be inferred, of the composer (the English translation was attributed to Mr. E. Emerson):
"As a typical expression of his fondness for nature and of the blissful and occasional reverent feelings which it stirs in him, the composer chose to present the emotions produced by a solitary walk through meadows and woods on a quiet summer afternoon, when the shadows grow long and longer, till they lose themselves in the dusk, and gradually turn into the early dark of night. Unlike Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony, the unconscious summer music of drowsy crickets and birds is not actually represented by instrumental equivalents. Subjective feeling only is suggested by the blithesome introduction melody in F major, which is ornamented by passages running over the instruments, like rills of pleasure. It is followed by an expression of the growing vociferous joy which all nature proclaims. The more quiet gladness of the beholder finds voice in the second melody, in A major, whose spirit is enlivened into a broader universal gaiety, rising rapidly to a climax, from which the theme quickly returns to the tranquil pastoral form.
"The so-called 'elaboration' section leads back to the first key of F major.... The predominating suggestions henceforth are peace and quietude, with little interruptions here and there, such as are occasioned by the sudden rustling of the tree-tops in the forest or by the subdued exclamations of a garrulous little brook. All this is done with a light touch, so that it is left to the imagination of the listener to supply what the music can but faintly suggest. Finally, when darkness has set in, there are only the sounds of night. The pervading mood of the composer becomes similar to that of Milton's 'Il Penseroso' when night overtakes him, while he listens to the even-song of the nightingale and hears
"... the far-off curfew sound,
Over some wide-watered shore,
Swinging slow with sullen roar."