Quartet in E Flat Major, Opus 51

Despite the fact that this work had been commissioned, and that he had been unable to concentrate on it as fully as he would have liked, Dvorak ultimately produced one of his most original and most distinctive chamber pieces. The work brims with a sense of life contentment, joy in his hitherto success, and his self-confidence as a composer. Dvorak wholeheartedly embraced the requirement to write music with Slavic undertones: the thematic material, rhythms and harmony all betray close associations with the spirit of folk music in a decidedly stylised form. Both outer movements are written in sonata form with slight deviations from traditional approaches (e.g. the recapitulation in the first movement does not begin with the first, but with the second subject). The second movement is one of Dvorak's finest dumkas, with which it shares the basic principle of alternating two highly contrasting themes. The third movement is marked as a "Romanza" and indeed constitutes a wonderful lyrical nocturne of dreamy, intimate mood. The final movement is a stylisation of the "skocna", a lively Czech folk dance. The eloquent melodies, flawless composition work and refinement rank this work as one of the finest quartets in the world repertoire. - antonin-dvorak.cz