Dvorak Symphony No.8 in G Major, Op. 88: The Hamburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Charles Mackerras, Conductor
The G Major of Dvorak was composed in 1889 when Dvorak, at 48, was in his full musical maturity. This is a purely Bohemian "Central European" symphony, straight out of the old composite Austrian Empire in which Bohemia was only a province, just then beginning to express its own cultural nationalization. Dvorak is a curiously endearing late-Romantic, more modern than Brahms but far closer to the early Romantics. There are stormy scenes and ominous moods (he was a superb mood painter) but they are evanescent. The basic mood is that of quiet, lyric confidence, merely overlaid with sadness or with ecstatic joy, or with resignation. Side One: I Allegro con brio II Adagio Side Two: III Allegretto grazioso IV Allegro ma on troppo
Dvorak  (Composer),     Charles Mackerras  (Conductor),     The Hamburg Philharmonic Orchestra  (Orchestra)    &                   1                  more
{"Date First Available": "May 28, 2011", "Manufacturer": "Checkmate"}