Antonin Dvorak
Antonin Dvorak was born on September 8, 1841 in Nelahozeves, a small village near Prague, the capital of what is today called the Czech Republic. He was the youngest of eight children. Dvorak's father Frantisek was a butcher, an innkeeper, and played the zither in his spare time. Later in life, he played it professionally.
At the age of ten, he began taking voice, and violin lessons from Joseph Spitz. Dvorak took to the violin quickly, and was soon playing in church, and village bands. When he was 16 years old, his parents sent him to Zlonice to continue his education in music, and in learning German. While studying in Zlonice with other great composers such as Antonin Liehmann, and Joseph Toman, he was taught how to sing, play the violin, organ, and piano, and music theory. With this new education, his interest in music grew.
In 1857, Dvorak's dad sent him to the Prague Organ School where he continued to study music theory, harmonization, modulation, improvisation, and counterpoint, and fugue. Also while attending the Organ School, Dvorak played the viola in the Cecilia Society where he was introduced to the works of such composers as Wagner, and Schumann. Dvorak graduated from the school in 1857 second in his class. In 1859, he joined the Provisional Theatre Orchestra as the head violinist. Though this job was a steady income, Dvorak needed more money in order to live comfortably. So, he began to teach piano to a woman who later became his wife, Anna Cermakova.
In 1871, Dvorak left the orchestra to compose music full time. His early works were very demanding on the artists who performed them, so he changed his style, and moved away from the Germanic classical style of music, and more towards the Slavonic streamline style. Along with teaching, Dvorak also joined the Austrian State Stipendium, which provided him with extra income. Brahms, another famous composer, was very much impressed by Dvorak's work, and awarded him 400 guldens, which...
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