In the summer of 1892, three months before he was scheduled to depart his Czech homeland for America, Antonín Dvořák received a commission for a festive cantata.
The request came from Mrs. Jeannette Thurber, the American philanthropist and arts patron who, in 1885 founded the National Conservatory of Music in New York. It was Thurber who recruited Dvořák to serve as the fledgling institution’s director. The cantata would allow the composer to introduce himself to American audiences. It would be performed at Carnegie Hall during the October 1892 celebration of the 400th anniversary of Columbus’ arrival on the continent. Thurber promised to provide a text for the cantata (Joseph Rodman Drake’s 1819 poem, The American Flag), but in case it did not arrive in time, “the proposition is that Dr. Dvořák choose some Latin Hymn such as ‘Te Deum laudamus’ or ‘Jubilate Deo’ or any other which would be suitable for the occasion.”
With his departure date fast approaching, Dvořák set to work on the festive Te Deum (“We Praise Thee, O God”), Op. 103, scored for soprano and bass soloists, mixed chorus, and orchestra. Despite its sacred text, the Te Deum‘s four movements unfold as a blazing, theatrical choral symphony. Filled with spirited Bohemian folk dance rhythms and idyllic birdsongs, this is music of the outdoors rather than the church. The wooded Czech landscape becomes a vast sacred space. Dvořák was a devout Catholic, but as a child, during the family prayer, he once exclaimed, “I pray best over there at the window, looking out at the greenery and the sky!”
The first movement (Te Deum laudamus) begins with pounding timpani. It is the exuberant, earthy drumbeat of an ancient Slavic outdoor pagan celebration. A single, static, prolonged chord unleashes primal forces. G major, with all of its sunny, pastoral associations, rings out in all of its glory. When the chorus erupts with its song of celebration, it is soon accompanied by cymbals, triangle, bass drum, and blazing trumpet fanfares. The music subsides to a jubilant whisper, and the solo soprano’s operatic statement speaks of the heavenly praise of apostles, prophets, and “a noble army of martyrs.” The flute, clarinet, and English horn interject with hushed, angelic quotes of the opening hymn melody.
Shifting to E-flat major, the second movement (Tu Rex gloriae) begins with brass fanfares, opening the door to the solo bass’ prayer of gratitude (“Thou art the King of Glory”). A dialogue unfolds between the bass’ statements of assurance, and the chorus’ meek response (“We therefore pray thee, help thy servants”).
The third movement (Aeterna fac) takes the form of a spirited scherzo in B minor. It concludes with the line, “and we worship thy name, ever world without end.” The movement dies away with distant drumbeats in the timpani, which lead into the final movement (Dignare, Domine).
In the final triumphant moments of the Te Deum, the soprano and bass join together to lead an ecstatic crescendo. “Alleluia!” rings out. The opening hymn of praise returns to conclude the work with a festive flourish.
I. Te Deum laudamus (Allegro maestoso):
II. Tu Rex gloriae (Meno mosso):
III. Aeterna fac (Lento):
IV. Dignare, Domine (Andante):
Recordings
- Dvořák: Te Deum, Op. 103, Robert Shaw, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus Amazon
Featured Image: “Introduction of the Slavonic Liturgy in Great Moravia, Praise the Lord in Your Native Tongue” (1912), Alphonse Mucha