Dvorák: Cello Concerto

by Jan Smaczny

Overview

Although Dvorák's cello concerto is enormously popular, no extended study of it has been undertaken hitherto. This book is a comprehensive study intended for concertgoers and students of this well-loved work. It considers aspects of historical background, form, virtuosity, performance and the concerto's rich personal content. This guide sees the work as a crucial means of exploring the composer's emotional life and links it intimately to the woman who was probably his first love.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521660501
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	09/28/1999
Series:	Cambridge Music Handbooks
Pages:	132
Product dimensions:	5.51(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.43(d)
Lexile:	1620L (what's this?)

Table of Contents

Preface and acknowledgements; 1. Dvorák and the cello; 2. Preludes to the Concerto; 3. The Concerto and Dvorák's 'American manner'; 4. 'Decisions and revisions': sketch and compositional process; 5. The score I: forms and melodies; 6. The score II: interpretations; 7. Performers and performances; Notes; Select bibliography; Select discography; Index.

Editorial Reviews

"Musicians in general and cellists in particular have reason to celebrate: Jan Smaczny has written an erudite, well researched and complete handbook on the Dvorák cello concerto. Smaczny has met the challenge of writing a complete study that is detailed and balanced, as well as consistently interesting. A work like this handbook is a rare and precious thing. It explores in some detail a specific concerto and is able to ompart to readers, through that exploration, and increased understanding and appreciation of music and performance in general and a view of a very personal and meaningful source of artistic creation." American Music Teacher

"Jan Smaczny...has produced a must-own volume for any serious cello student, teacher of cello, conductor of the Dvorák concerto, or die-hard fan of the work. Smaczny's musical analysis is succinct and helpful....offers valuable insight in to the concerto's "meaning"..." American String Teacher

"...an engaging study of Dvorák's compositional process, his life in the United States, his views on American and Czech music, and his mysterious relationship with the cello..." Notes

From the Publisher