Antonin Dvořák was always skeptical of the cello as a suitable instrument for a concerto. He loved the instrument’s middle range, but wasn’t fond of the high register or the “mumbling” lowest notes. Also, he doubted the ability of the instrument to project sufficiently above a full orchestra.
Such concerns were not new. One of the criticisms of Schumann’s Cello Concerto is that he was so fearful of covering up his solo instrument that he toned down the orchestra to a fault.
Unlike the other “American” works, such as the “New World” Symphony and the “American” String Quartet, the concerto does not hav influences from the composer’s experience in the United States. When he began working on the piece, he devoted himself to it feverishly.
Here is cellist Gautier Capucon to play this wonderful concerto for you:
