BLOMSTEDT CONDUCTS DVOŘÁK

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Artists

Herbert Blomstedt

Conductor

San Francisco Symphony

program

Symphony in D major
[San Francisco Symphony Premiere]

Jan Václav Voříšek

Symphony No. 8

Antonín Dvořák

performances

Davies Symphony Hall

Thu, Feb 9, 2023 at 2:00PM

Davies Symphony Hall

Fri, Feb 10, 2023 at 7:30PM

Davies Symphony Hall

Sun, Feb 12, 2023 at 2:00PM

If you would like assistance purchasing tickets for patrons with disabilities, please call the box office at 415-864-6000.

HERBERT BLOMSTEDT’S APPEARANCE IS GENEROUSLY SUPPORTED BY THE BARBRO OSHER PRO SUECIA FOUNDATION.

THURSDAY MATINEE CONCERTS ARE ENDOWED BY A GIFT IN MEMORY OF RHODA GOLDMAN.

Event Description

Antonín Dvořák’s Eighth Symphony recalls the Bohemian countryside with simplicity and nostalgia, bringing the listener on excursions through open fields and dense woods. Conductor Laureate Herbert Blomstedt opens this distinctly Bohemian program with the SF Symphony premiere of Jan Vaclav Voříšek’s Symphony in D major, a work deeply influenced by the soaring melodies and grand orchestral sounds of his Romantic musical heroes.

At A Glance

One of a small army of Czech musicians who settled in the musical capital of Vienna during the Classical era, Jan Václav Hugo Voříšek was acclaimed as one of the city’s finest pianists, worked as Vienna’s Court Organist, and produced a small but choice catalogue of compositions during his brief life of 34 years. He befriended Beethoven and Schubert, clearly absorbing lessons from their orchestral music that he put to use in his own fascinating Symphony in D major, completed in 1823 but not published until 134 years later.

Antonín Dvořák's Symphony No. 8, written in 1889, is one of his sunniest symphonies, a contrast with the stormier Symphonies Nos. 6 and 7 (originally published as 1 and 2) that had brought him fame across Europe. The Eighth is filled with the sounds of the Bohemian countryside and its folk music.