Josef Suk's Serenade for Strings in E flat major, Op. 6, was composed in 1892.
While Suk was studying under
Antonín Dvořák
Antonín Leopold Dvořák ( ; ; 8 September 1841 – 1 May 1904) was a Czechs, Czech composer. Dvořák frequently employed rhythms and other aspects of the folk music of Moravian traditional music, Moravia and his native Bohemia, following t ...
at the
Prague Conservatory, Dvořák noticed a melancholy strain in much of Suk's music, and recommended he try writing some lighter and more cheerful music. Based on Dvořák's suggestion, Suk produced the ''Serenade for Strings''.
Two movements were publicly conducted by Suk in late 1893 in
Tábor
Tábor (; german: Tabor) is a town in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 33,000 inhabitants. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument reservation.
Administrative parts
The followi ...
. The first complete performance was on 25 February 1895, at the Prague Conservatory, conducted by
Antonín Bennewitz
Antonín Bennewitz (also Anton Bennewitz; 26 March 1833 – 29 May 1926) was a Bohemian violinist, conductor and teacher. He was in a line of violinists that extended back to Giovanni Battista Viotti, and forward to Jan Kubelík and Wolfgang Schne ...
, Suk's violin teacher at the Conservatory.
The Serenade soon brought Suk considerable fame and Dvořák's longtime supporter,
Johannes Brahms
Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid- Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped wit ...
, endorsed its publication.
Structure
The serenade comprises four
movements:
# ''Andante con moto''
# ''Allegro ma non troppo e grazioso''
# ''Adagio''
# ''Allegro giocoso, ma non troppo presto''
References
External links
*
Compositions by Josef Suk
Serenades
Compositions for string orchestra
1892 compositions
Compositions in E-flat major
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