Selections from Serenade, Op. 44

At the beginning of 1878, during a trip to Vienna, Dvorak attended a concert given by the Vienna Philharmonic, whose program included Mozart's Serenade in B-flat Major for wind instruments. He was so impressed with the work that as soon as he arrived back in Prague he began a composition for the same instrumentation. Completed within fourteen days, this Serenade, Op. 44 was premiered in the same year conducted by the composer himself. This arrangement for flute orchestra by Shaul Ben-Meir consists of three of the four movements. The first movement (Moderato, quasi marcia) is an example of a traditional introductory march. The second movement (Menuetto), also reflects classicaltraditions, but with influences of the Czech folk dances “Sousedska” and “Furiant”. The fourth movement (Finale) is reminiscent of a polka, which thanks to its lively rhythms and inventive thematic treatment, brings the work to an energetic close. As in the Serenade for Strings (Op. 22), the piece concludes with a quotation of the introductory march motif at the end of the movement.