Antonín Dvořák:
Symphony No. 7 in D minor, Op. 70, B 141 (with Score)
Composed: 13 December 1884 - 17 March 1885 (revision 1885)
Conductor: Václav Neumann
Orchestra: Czech Philharmonic
00:00 1. Allegro maestoso (D minor)
11:12 2. Poco adagio (F major)
20:48 3. Scherzo: Vivace - Poco meno mosso (D minor - D major)
28:29 4. Finale: Allegro (D minor)
Dvořák’s seventh symphony in succession, written in D minor, enjoys a special status in the composer’s series of nine symphonies. Its gloomy atmosphere is in direct contrast not only to its two neighbouring symphonies (Nos. 6 and 8), but also to the large majority of Dvořák’s oeuvre as a whole. It is characteristic for its dramatic expression and sombre atmosphere of grave uncertainty and obstinate defiance. It is distinguished for its absence of any Slav-inspired melodies which were characteristic for the composer’s preceding Slavic period and with which his compositional style is usually associated. In spite of its dramatic impact, this is also a profoundly intimate work where the composer examines the meanderings of his soul and the answers to elementary issues of human existence. While it cannot compete in popularity with Dvořák’s New World Symphony, in terms of its overall conception, the gravity of its testimony and its masterful formal treatment, this is a supreme example of symphonic writing which ranks alongside some of the most important works in the post-Beethoven development of the symphonic genre; a number of experts even place it above the symphonies of Brahms.
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