Here's a real gem for those who love Czech music. The three Dvorák pieces here were all written in a hurry for domestic music gatherings -- in one case over a few days -- but they are all excellebt examples of the composer's mature style. Anyone who likes the Piano Trio No. 4 in E minor, "Dumky," or the Piano Quintet in A major, Op. 81, will enjoy these little pieces, which work out a lot of the same ideas in a very inventive way. Consider the lovely pentatonic melody of the fourth of the five Bagatelles for two violins, ...
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Here's a real gem for those who love Czech music. The three Dvorák pieces here were all written in a hurry for domestic music gatherings -- in one case over a few days -- but they are all excellebt examples of the composer's mature style. Anyone who likes the Piano Trio No. 4 in E minor, "Dumky," or the Piano Quintet in A major, Op. 81, will enjoy these little pieces, which work out a lot of the same ideas in a very inventive way. Consider the lovely pentatonic melody of the fourth of the five Bagatelles for two violins, cello, and harmonium, Op. 47, written more than 15 years before America is supposed to have pushed Dvorák's thinking in a pentatonic direction and then hear its delightful canonic development. The three collections of Dvorák works are all attractive, but the Bagatelles are perhaps most interesting due to the presence of the harmonium. Even the booklet notes by Antonín Matzner (in English, French, German, and Czech) are a bit apologetic about this, but they shouldn't be; the harmonium...
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