Symphony No. 6 in D Major

In 1881, Dvořák was in the first flush of his international fame. His Sixth Symphony was commissioned by the Austrian conductor Hans Richter, on the advice of their mutual friend Brahms, and was intended for the Vienna Philharmonic. Dvořák responded with a work of glowing warmth and masterly assurance: simultaneously a homage to the great Austro-German symphonic tradition (and in particular Brahms) and a proud assertion of his own individuality as an artist. Dvořák was sufficiently proud of his achievement to have it published, and for many years it was known, confusingly, as his Symphony No. 1. Like its classical models, it’s in four movements: beginning with a pulsing rhythm on violas and horns, before opening out into a first movement that’s by turns pastoral, lyrical and heroic. The second movement opens with tender woodwinds: a gentle tribute to Beethoven, played out under Bohemian village skies. The third marks a thunderous change of mood, a “Scherzo” that’s a headlong Czech “Furiant” (a particularly forceful folk dance) in the manner of Dvořák’s Slavonic Dances. At its heart, though, is an interlude of pure sweetness, topped out by—of all instruments—a solo piccolo. And after the storm, the “Finale” slips in quietly, before developing an unstoppable momentum. Jubilant brass blazes over whirlwind strings as the Symphony sweeps to a triumphant conclusion.