Iowa was music to his ears

The New World Symphony No. 9 in E Minor premiered at Carnegie Hall in New York City Dec. 16, 1893, 129 years ago. What does this have to do with Iowa, 1,200 miles away? Everything.

Antonin Dvorak (pronounced Deh-vor-zschak) was born in the small village of Nelahozeves, in the Czech Republic, on Sept. 8, 1841. The son of a butcher, he had spent time on farms corralling cattle, enjoying the wildlife and, in particular, the songbirds, of the hilly countryside.

His true calling was evident, however, when, as a young student, he began playing the violin in area churches and music halls. So quickly did he catch on to music and composition that by the time he reached high school age, Dvorak was writing his own melodies and playing them at Sunday services in the largest of churches in the region.

Seeing his talent, his father enrolled him at the Prague Institute of Music where the burgeoning student graduated after only two years and, along the way, mastered the viola, which he played regularly in a leading symphony orchestra in the city.

In 1876, he received a grant to compose scores and perform music in Vienna and Germany where his works were widely published and conducted in major symphony halls across Europe.

At the same time his star was rising, the National Conservatory of Music in New York was struggling, so its president, Jeanette Thurber, invited Dvorak to serve as director for two academic years. Wanting to spread his influence beyond Europe, he agreed, and arrived at New York for the 1892-93 season.

Dvorak found the city in the New World, as he called it, to be impressive and began jotting down notes and bars as the scenery and culture inspired him.

Despite the glamour and glitter of the big city, the small town boy at heart noticed he missed the more relaxed, leisurely pace of life in the smaller, more rural community of his childhood. When classes dismissed for summer break, one of his most promising pupils, Josef Kovarik, suggested they go to stay with his parents in his own hometown of Spillville, Iowa.

Dvorak found the idea to be a breath of fresh air, and, as he hadn’t quite completed, nor given a formal title to his work highlighting the New World, thought it would provide an opportunity for fresh influences. He wanted to bring his wife and children along, however, so residing with the Kovarik family was not feasible. As a result, Dvorak rented the second floor of one of only two commercial buildings in all of Spillville, and set up shop there for the summer.

Every morning, he would rise early to the sounds of flocks of songbirds preening themselves in the trees along the banks of the Turkey River and stretch his legs with long walks into the surrounding countryside. Asked why such long sojourns into the wild, he responded, “for the first time in eight months, I heard again the singing of birds.”

Sundays, though, were for a different form of singing. Czech immigrants had arrived in the area around Spillville in the 1850s, and by 1860, had erected a beautiful stone church, named after the patron saint of the Czech Republic, St. Wenceslaus. Nine years later, an imposing new Pfeffer tracker organ had been installed to regale the community’s 300 or so parishioners with the joyous sounds of Eastern European music.

For nearly every church service, Dvorak played the organ for the community’s residents, except the weekend he was asked to appear and perform at the World’s Fair in Chicago. On his long walks, he also met Native Americans of the Kickapoo tribe, and became enamored with the rhythms of their native chants.

This, combined with the lively and recessed syncopations of gospel and spiritual music (largely derived from African American origins), it was later claimed by Kovarik, were the inspiration for which Dvorak had been seeking, and were the sounds which Dvorak used in completing his opus to the New World. Along the way, Dvorak also wrote two additional compositions, String Quartet No. 12 in F Minor and String Quintet No. 3 in E Major, which, he said, embodied the spirit he found in Spillville. These, he titled, his “American Music.”

Dvorak and his family left Spillville at the end of September to return to New York where he submitted his New World Symphony for publication and it made its debut to rave reviews at Carnegie Hall. New World, to this day in the 21st century, still is considered one of the most stirring and influential pieces of classical music of the last two centuries. When asked what accounted for his success, Dvorak simply said, “The birds, flowers, myself, and God.” Perhaps we, of the Hawkeye State, can proudly add a warm summer in northeast Iowa to that list.

To commemorate the 130th anniversary of the New World Symphony next year, you can visit this summer the site where Dvorak stayed during his retreat in Spillville. It is now home to the Bily Clocks Museum, a collection of massive intricate wooden clocks hand carved by Spillville area farmers, Frank and Joseph Bily. The museum is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. May through October and by appointment during the winter.

David V. Wendell is a Marion historian, author and special events coordinator specializing in American history.