The Detroit Symphony Orchestra will bring one of classical music’s most recognizable works back to Orchestra Hall this weekend with performances of Antonín Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9, “From the New World.” The concerts are scheduled for April 30 through May 2 and are part of a program that also highlights music from across the Americas.
Written in 1893 during Dvořák’s time in the United States, “From the New World” reflects the composer’s fascination with American musical traditions. While serving as director of the National Conservatory of Music in New York, the Czech composer encouraged U.S. musicians to draw inspiration from African American spirituals and Indigenous melodies, an approach that shaped the symphony’s distinctive sound. Dvořák described the work as an effort to capture the spirit of America rather than directly quote its music, blending new influences with his own Bohemian style.
The symphony’s famous second movement, marked by its lyrical English horn theme, has become especially emblematic, often associated with longing and wide-open landscapes. Elsewhere, bold brass writing, dance-like rhythms and dramatic contrasts give the piece a sense of optimism and exploration. Together, these elements helped make “New World” a cornerstone of the orchestral repertoire and a work that influenced generations of American composers.
Under the baton of music director Jader Bignamini, the DSO’s performances frame Dvořák’s symphony alongside music from Mexico and Argentina, reinforcing its place within a broader New World context. The program underscores how Dvořák’s ideas about national identity in music continue to resonate more than a century after the symphony’s premiere.
Also on deck for the concert is a trumpet concerto by Arturo Márquez, played by virtuoso Pacho Flores.
“I met maestro Arturo Márquez when I was 12 years old, when I was working in the Simón Bolívar youth orchestra,” Flores told the Free Press by phone from Spain. “I was playing his very famous Danzón No. 2, one of the most iconic pieces in the Latin American repertoire. And I remember I said to maestro, ‘Maestro, someday you have to write a trumpet concerto!’ And, well, little by little, over the years, I was growing up, improving my artistic career, and someday I proposed to him to make the piece.
“Now, it’s part of the trumpet repertoire. In Detroit, it will make 92 times I have played this piece. I use four different trumpets — and also, I use a trumpet with four valves. As you know, the regular trumpet has three. I use four because I can extend a little more.”
Flores expressed excitement for his trip to Detroit.
“It’s an honor for me to play in the United States, with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. It’s going to be my debut there, and I’m very happy for it.”
Detroit Symphony Orchestra
Dvořák’s “New World” symphony
7:30 p.m. April 30, 8 p.m. May 1-2
Orchestra Hall
3711 Woodward Ave.
$20.95 & up
dso.org
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: DSO tackling familiar work that has African American, Indigenous roots
Reporting by Duante Beddingfield, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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