Slavonic Dance Op. 46 No. 8

A. DvořákOp. 46 No. 8

Key

Gm

Time

3/4

Tempo

♩=152

AO focus

AO3

Form

Furiant — fiery Bohemian dance. The eighth and most-performed of Dvořák's first Slavonic Dance set (Op. 46). Originally for piano four-hands; better-known in the orchestral version.

Teaching points

• Furiant rhythm — alternating 3/4 and 2/4 cross-accents create rhythmic instability
• Folk-derived — Dvořák uses Bohemian dance forms but composes original melodies (unlike Brahms's Hungarian Dances which adapt existing tunes)
• AO3: Czech nationalism in music — Dvořák and Smetana's project of building a Czech symphonic idiom