Dvořák - Symphony No. 8 - Program Note

Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904)
Symphony No. 8 in G Major, Op. 88, B. 163
Composed 1889

Why does the eighth symphony of Dvořák hold such a special place for orchestras? The seventh is thought of as the most profound of his nine symphonies, and the “New World” is famous for its musical cross- pollination. In reading a short stack of program notes from scholars on
the eighth to prepare for this writing, I found that the words used most to identify the eighth symphony are “folk” and “Slavic.” Over and over again we are told that the Czechs, and especially Dvořák, relied on their national history and culture to produce the music that has become beloved the world over. Missing is an exploration, or really even an explanation, of what those folk elements might be, how they are incorporated musically, and how we can identify them as listener. So, let’s explore.

In the case of the Czech culture, there exists a distinct political history that runs alongside its cultural one. Exactly 400 years ago, Germanic influence overtook the regions of Bohemia, Moravia and Slovakia. German became the official language and only the peasants retained the Czech (Bohemian) language. For two hundred years, this remained the case—until the industrial revolution drove the peasants and farmers towards the cities. It was at this time, in the early 19th century, that artists began to reinvest in the preservation of a uniquely Czech culture.

To relate Czech “folk” influence, the creators turned to the spoken language and to the dances of the common people. The furiant dance is Czech and often used by the nation’s symphonic composers. In addition, and a surprise to me, the “oom-pah” polka is the other dance whose origins are Czech.

The furiant is distinctive because of its hallmark opposing beat structures. While the overarching rhythmic pattern is based in a triple meter, the furiant will infuse duple groupings that serve to create an intentional instability and therefore, a sense of spontaneity in the music. The polka is much more straightforward. Czech polkas are framed in a 2/4 time, with emphasis placed on the primary beat of each gesture.

These rhythmic groupings and structures are uniquely Czech and help to form the folk music tendencies. They are generated from the stress patterns within the language, which emphasize the first syllable of every word, followed by an alternating pattern of stress on subsequent syllables. Therefore, the polka can be seen as the simplest derivative of this structure. Oom-pah, Oom-pah: a musical representation of two-syllable words with the stress falling on the first syllable of each. The furiant is the evolved version—expanding the mirroring of language to include multi- syllable formations that would have additional stresses within each word. This allows for the mixed-meter time-signatures, for which composers like Smetana and Dvořák are known.

I would also argue that simplicity of orchestration is a hallmark of this folk style. In the eighth symphony, this manifests in certain characteristic ways: a single soloist or section is used for many main melodic lines (you will hear cellos and a solo flute open the symphony in this manner); block usage of the winds, the strings and the brass as separate units of color; limited use of percussion instruments; and a lack of intricate counterpoint. These types of musical decisions can lead to a feeling of rusticity around the music.

Dvořák’s eighth is not a test of virtuosity, nor of ambition. It simply is. So today, perhaps consider how you respond to a symphony of this type—that aims to please rather than to challenge.

~By John Devlin
PSO Assistant Conductor, 2015-2018
Music Director, Wheeling Symphony Orchestra