Why did the man who called the cello insufficient write its greatest concerto?
In short: Antonín Dvořák long dismissed the cello as a solo instrument, complaining of its nasal high register and mumbling bass. Yet, after hearing Victor Herbert perform in New York, he changed his mind. The resulting B minor concerto is now widely considered the king of all cello concertos, a masterpiece of romantic power.
Written between November 1894 and February 1895 while Dvořák served as Director of the National Conservatory in New York, the Cello Concerto in B minor, Op. 104, was a surprising pivot for the composer. Despite years of refusal to write for the instrument, Dvořák was inspired by his colleague Victor Herbert, whose own Cello Concerto No. 2 he heard in early 1894. The work was originally intended for his friend Hanuš Wihan, who had long requested a concerto, but the two clashed over artistic control. Dvořák was adamant that the form remain as he envisioned it, famously rejecting Wihan’s suggested cadenzas and insisting that no alterations be made without his permission.
The concerto is deeply personal, particularly in its third movement. Dvořák dedicated this section to his sister-in-law, Josefina Kaunitzova, who was gravely ill at the time. He wove a quotation of his song 'Leave Me Alone' into the score as a wistful tribute. Following her death in May 1895, Dvořák revised the work further. The premiere, held in London on March 19, 1896, did not feature Wihan due to scheduling conflicts; instead, the English cellist Leo Stern performed the solo part on a 1684 'General Kyd' Stradivarius, under the composer's baton.
Brahms, Dvořák's mentor, was intimately familiar with the score, having corrected the proofs himself. Upon hearing the work, Brahms reportedly lamented that he would have attempted a cello concerto himself had he known such a feat was possible. The piece remains a staple of the repertoire, recorded by legends from Pablo Casals to Yo-Yo Ma. Its legacy is one of technical rigor and emotional depth, culminating in a stormy, grandioso finale that Dvořák insisted must end with a diminuendo 'like a breath' before a final, powerful orchestral surge.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: Cello Concerto (Dvořák)
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