Dvorak - Slavonic Dances
£14.73 £13.25
save £1.47 (10%)
special offer ending 01/01/2026
Currently out of stock at the UK suppliers. Available to order, but is likely to take longer than usual to despatch
Despatch Information
This despatch estimate is based on information from both our own stock and the UK supplier's stock.
If ordering multiple items, we will aim to send everything together so the longest despatch estimate will apply to the complete order.
If you would rather receive certain items more quickly, please place them on a separate order.
If any unexpected delays occur, we will keep you informed of progress via email and not allow other items on the order to be held up.
If you would prefer to receive everything together regardless of any delay, please let us know via email.
Pre-orders will be despatched as close as possible to the release date.
Label: Pentatone
Cat No: PTC5187414
Format: CD
Number of Discs: 1
Genre: Orchestral
Release Date: 3rd October 2025
Contents
Artists
Czech PhilharmonicConductor
Simon RattleWorks
Slavonic Dances: Series I, op.46 B83Slavonic Dances: Series II, op.72 B147
Artists
Czech PhilharmonicConductor
Simon RattleAbout
A celebration of Bohemian spirit and rhythmic brilliance, Antonín Dvořák’s Slavonic Dances come to life in a vibrant new recording by the Czech Philharmonic, led by the masterful Sir Simon Rattle. These vivid orchestral gems, full of rhythmic vitality, folkloric colour, and lyrical charm, are central to Dvořák’s legacy and pivotal in defining a Czech national sound. Composed at a turning point in the composer’s career, the Slavonic Dances radiate with joy, invention, and national character – qualities that captivated audiences across Europe and beyond. As Principal Guest Conductor: Rafael Kubelík Chair, Sir Simon Rattle has already graced the label alongside the orchestra and Magdalena Kožená with Czech Songs (2024) and Folk Songs (2023).
This release continues the exclusive collaboration between PENTATONE and the Czech Philharmonic (awarded Gramophone's Orchestra of the Year in 2024), committed to bringing Czech music to life on a global stage. It follows the acclaimed recordings of Dvořák’s Symphonies nos. 7, 8 & 9 (2024) and, 2025’s winner of the BBC Music Magazine Orchestral Award, Smetana’s Má vlast with Chief Conductor and Music Director, Semyon Bychkov, as well as Dvořák’s Legends and Rhapsodies with Tomáš Netopil.
This release continues the exclusive collaboration between PENTATONE and the Czech Philharmonic (awarded Gramophone's Orchestra of the Year in 2024), committed to bringing Czech music to life on a global stage. It follows the acclaimed recordings of Dvořák’s Symphonies nos. 7, 8 & 9 (2024) and, 2025’s winner of the BBC Music Magazine Orchestral Award, Smetana’s Má vlast with Chief Conductor and Music Director, Semyon Bychkov, as well as Dvořák’s Legends and Rhapsodies with Tomáš Netopil.
Sound/Video
Paused
-
1Slavonic Dances (Series I), op.46, B83 (1878): No.1 in C major (Furiant). Presto
-
2Slavonic Dances (Series I), op.46, B83 (1878): No.2 in E major (Dumka). Allegretto scherzando
-
3Slavonic Dances (Series I), op.46, B83 (1878): No.3 in A flat major (Polka). Poco allegro
-
4Slavonic Dances (Series I), op.46, B83 (1878): No.4 in F major (Sousedská). Tempo di minuetto
-
5Slavonic Dances (Series I), op.46, B83 (1878): No.5 in A major (Skočná). Allegro vivace
-
6Slavonic Dances (Series I), op.46, B83 (1878): No.6 in D major (Sousedská). Allegretto scherzando
-
7Slavonic Dances (Series I), op.46, B83 (1878): No.7 in C minor (Skočná). Allegro assai
-
8Slavonic Dances (Series I), op.46, B83 (1878): No.8 in G minor (Furiant). Presto
-
9Slavonic Dances (Series II), op.72, B147 (1886): No.1 in B major (Odzmek). Molto vivace
-
10Slavonic Dances (Series II), op.72, B147 (1886): No.2 in E minor (Mazur). Allegretto grazioso
-
11Slavonic Dances (Series II), op.72, B147 (1886): No.3 in F major (Skočná). Allegro
-
12Slavonic Dances (Series II), op.72, B147 (1886): No.4 in D flat major (Dumka). Allegretto grazioso
-
13Slavonic Dances (Series II), op.72, B147 (1886): No.5 in B flat minor (Špacírka). Poco adagio
-
14Slavonic Dances (Series II), op.72, B147 (1886): No.6 in B flat major (Polonéza). Moderato, quasi minuetto
-
15Slavonic Dances (Series II), op.72, B147 (1886): No.7 in C major (Srbské kolo). Presto
-
16Slavonic Dances (Series II), op.72, B147 (1886): No.8 in A flat major (Sousedská). Lento grazioso, quasi tempo di valse
Europadisc Review
The collaboration between the illustrious Czech Philharmonic Orchestra and the Pentatone label, which began in 2022, has already delivered abundant fruits. Chief conductor Semyon Bychkov’s ongoing Mahler cycle has won critical plaudits, and last year’s disc of Smetana’s Má vlast was similarly feted (including by us!). Now, with its principal guest conductor (and Rafael Kubelík Conducting Chair) Simon Rattle, they present another iconic work from the Czech repertoire: Antonín Dvořák’s Slavonic Dances. This is music that the orchestra has recorded dozens of times, and its earliest account, with Václav Talich in 1935 on HMV, still holds a very special place in the discography, as does their Supraphon remake of 1950, together with the superb 1959 stereo recording under Karel Šejna. Forty years later, Charles Mackerras – a pupil of Talich – put down another benchmark recording with the orchestra, authoritative yet wonderfully sensitive and pliant.
So, how does Rattle stack up against such venerable classics? Given that the Czech Phil could probably play this music in their sleep, does Rattle have insights of his own to bring? The answer is, most definitely, yes. There is, however, nothing forced about these performances. The earlier Op.46 set (1878) was Dvořák’s breakthrough work, composed at the suggestion of Brahms’s publisher Simrock, with the Czech composer riding high in the wake of an Austrian State grant which allowed him to focus on composition. With works like the Serenade for Strings and the lovely Fifth Symphony already under his belt, he brought a freshness of invention to these dances. Initially written and published in piano duet format, and then splendidly orchestrated, the eight dances are all original compositions in the spirit of folk dances, rather than quoting actual folk melodies.
Rattle completely gets the lightness of touch required to make this music dance, the sprung rhythms, the subtle rhythmic inflections, and (in the faster music, such as the two furiants that frame the set) the sheer energy and ebullience to bring this music to life. What is unique to this performance – aided by a finely focused recording in the Dvořák Hall of Prague’s Rudolfinum, without the swimminess that can sometimes come from that venue – is the attention to detail. In the coda to the opening Furiant, the underpinning timpani rhythm is crystal-clear. Gear shifts in the popular A flat major Polka (no.3) are immaculate, and the famous duet for trumpets has a marvellous dreamy quality; the written-out viola and cello trills in the coda (marked forzando, but rarely heard clearly on recordings) emerge with unprecedented clarity. The tossing of grace-note figuration between string and wind in the trio section of the minuet-like F major Sousedská (no.4) takes on a human quality (a cheeky call-and-response), without undermining the cellos’ lyrical countermelody. In the succeeding Skočná, the strings produce some gloriously ripe textures which nevertheless never drag down the tempo.
No.6 (another Sousedská) has just the right combination of rhythmic poise and village-dance atmosphere. The canonic writing in the C minor Skočná (no.7) is perfectly balanced yet with a hint of cheerfulness leading into the freer dance passages. The concluding G minor Furiant – probably the most famous music of all the Slavonic Dances – has all the necessary energy and excitement, but with an iron grip on the tempo, while the speed gently eases for the trio section, where once again inner parts are tellingly caught.
Composed in just a month in the summer of 1886 (once again, at Simrock’s suggestion), the Op.72 set is characterised by greater subtlety, particularly in the expressive depths of the slower music, yet Rattle and his Czech forces still bring plenty of sparkle and brio to their performances. Here too there are telling details: the rap of the timpani at the end of the lively opening Odzemek, for example, or the delicate inflections of phrasing in the wistful slow waltz of the following Mazur. In the F major Skočná (no.3), the timpani rhythm in the upbeat to the main theme is another seldom-heard detail (Doráti’s swifter 1983 RPO account, with poorly balanced wind, sounds too rushed).
In the later dances of the 1872 set, the mood of nostalgia deepens, and Rattle and his players bring wonderful colours to the dreamily-scored Dumka (no.4). The severe, knotty textures of the B flat minor Špacírka (no.5) are difficult to nail successfully, but the livelier central section, which returns at the end, brims with high spirits. The Polonéza of no.6 (marked ‘quasi Minuetto’) has an almost classical hue, yet Rattle finds plenty of enchanting detail to tease out of the music. The Serbian kolo (no.7) is a last blast of high spirits, another instance of great excitement and phenomenal playing immaculately controlled, while the concluding Sousedská, a nostalgia-laden slow waltz, is heart-stoppingly lovely: Rattle’s deep affinity with this music is nowhere more evident than here.
In sum, this is a superb release, vividly recorded, with the Czech Philharmonic on top form – less characterful in timbre, arguably, than seventy years ago, but compensating for that in levels of sensitivity and orchestral virtuosity. Rattle’s feel for Czech music just seems to get richer with time, and this disc now comfortably joins those august names mentioned at the outset. Thoroughly recommended!
Reviews
What a joy this is – every turn of phrase, every inflection, every infectious rhythm so completely inbred. Effortless. ... Rattle must take much of the credit for opening our ears to the detail beyond the charm but then again he is working with an orchestra for whom this music is self-evidently in its blood. ... A terrific album, then, delivering music of bountiful generosity and geniality but lifting it out of all familiarity with imagination and panache. Edward SeckersonGramophone November 2025
With both sets of dances on this disc it might seem excessive to listen to so many bon-bons straight off, but Rattle elicits a wider range of colour and feeling than most other conductors. ... Comparisons with the Czech Philharmonic’s other recordings find Rattle a little less helter-skelter than the inimitable Rafael Kubelík, but the range of expression he gets is second to none. And, of course, the orchestra plays with its customary, wonderfully cultivated, warm sound.Financial Times
Error on this page? Let us know here
Need more information on this product? Click here