Dvořák: Symphony No.9 in E Minor, Op.95, "From the New World" (Flor)

Dvořák's 9th symphony is one of those pieces that are preceded by their reputation. It was a tremendous success from the day of its premiere and it tends to be taken for granted as a result.

This symphony is quite ambivalent in terms of emotional expression, with its not-so-happy ending, but also through its handling of form. The whole piece hovers between the conservatism of traditional forms and the introduction of quite advanced ideas.

This contradiction can be observed right from the first movement, in which Dvořák reintroduced the exposition repeat after abandoning it in his 7th and 8th symphonies. On the other hand, Dvořák does something very unusual in the exposition, as the second subject is never restated in the tonic key of E. Instead, he waits until the coda to bring back the key of E minor, giving the wild conclusion of the movement an even greater dramatic impact.

The first movement also features a remarkable piece of thematic transformation, as the concluding theme of the exposition (04:12) is a literal inversion of the first subjet (02:09). That simple, Haydnesque trick (which is often missed by listeners) anticipates the establishment of the first subject as the main theme of the symphony, which is also foreshadowed in the slow introduction (01:40).
This theme and its inverted form will indeed appear in every subsequent movement.

The 4th movement is assuredly the least conventional of the symphony: despite following a sonata form structure, it really acts as a recapitulation for the entire piece, unifying the symphony through references to all three preceding movements.

Besides formal and thematic considerations, this symphony is also delightfully orchestrated and full of details worth noting. After all, it's Dvořák.
The scoring of the second movement is especially beautiful. Just listen to the section starting at 17:59: the delicate interplay between the flutes/oboes and the first violins, on top of a thin tapestry of string tremolos and an ostinato figure played by the clarinets, it's simply glorious. Or the superb duet between the solo violin and the solo cello at the end of the movement (21:56).

Of course, a piece with such a strong reputation in the symphonic repertoire is not short of great recordings. Claus Peter Flor and his Malaysian forces (of all places) deliver a performance as fresh and exciting as it can be. Flor galvanizes his orchestra and gets a playing that is resolutely world class. He definitely has a flair for Dvořák's music: idimatic in its songfulness and perkiness, but also very spontaneous and passionate.
Flor also has a thing for climaxes: he nails every single one of them. For instance, the last climax before the coda of the 4th movement (40:16) is one of the most savage ever recorded.

00:00 Intro
00:13 I. Adagio - Allegro molto
11:59 II. Largo
24:00 III. Scherzo: Molto vivace
31:29 IV. Allegro con fuoco

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